LIBRARY  OF  THE  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY 

PRINCETON.  N.  J. 


PRESENTED  BY 

Leon  AriDee 


BV  2060  .S3  1920 
Saunders,  J.  Roscoe,  1873- 
The  cross  and  the 
reconstruction  of  the  worl< 


THE  CROSS  AN 
THE  RECONSTRUC 
OF  THE  WORLD 

MANKIND'S  ONE  HOPE  OF  CONQUEST 


BY 

J.  R.  SAUNDERS,  Th.D. 

Missionary  in  Canton,  China 


INTRODUCTION  BY 

GEORGE  W.  TRUETT,  D.D. 


New  York  Chicago  Toronto 

Fleming  H.   Revell  Company 

London  and  Edinburgh 


Copyright,  1920,  by 
FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 


New  York:  158  Fifth  Avenue 
Chicago:  17  North  Wabash  Ave. 
London :  21  Paternoster  Square 
Edinburgh:    75     Princes     Street 


DEDICATED 

TO 

MRS.  LOU  F.  WHITE,  LANCASTER,   TEXAS,  U.  S.  A. 

Whose  material  help  aided  greatly  in  its  publication,  and 

who  earnestly  prays  that  its  message  concerning  the 

Cross  may  be  richly  blest  in  the  unceasing  eflforts 

of  her  sisters  in  Christ  of  every  nation  to  win 

this  world  to  our  Lord  and  Master. 


INTRODUCTION 

THE  author  of  this  book,  the  Rev.  J.  R. 
Saunders,  went  from  America  some  twenty 
years  ago,  to  live  and  labour  in  China,  with 
headquarters  in  Canton.  He  and  his  work  are  quite 
well  known  to  many  in  America,  and  are  held  in 
very  high  esteem  wherever  known.  He  has  faith- 
fully devoted  himself  to  the  many-sided  work  of 
the  missionary,  that  is,  to  preaching,  teaching, 
translating,  etc.  He  has  also  travelled  extensively, 
both  in  China  and  Japan,  studying  the  fields  and 
problems  of  missionary  endeavour  at  close  range. 
He  writes,  therefore,  out  of  vital  and  vivid  experi- 
ences. This  book,  "  The  Cross  and  the  Reconstruc- 
tion of  the  World,'*  is  the  outcome  of  his  personal 
study  and  experience,  in  seeking  to  help  humanity 
in  the  great  fields  of  mission  activity.  The  book 
has  not  been  written  primarily  for  scholars  and  the 
gchools,  but  rather  for  the  people  in  general,  for  all 
who  wish  to  see  this  sinful,  needy,  suffering  world 
brought  into  right  relations  to  God. 

The  author  traces  the  present  rapidly  changing 
world  conditions  politically,  industrially,  socially, 
educationally,  religiously,  making  the  earnest  in- 
sistence that  Chrisjianity  must  now  ^nd  ^ver  be  th? 

6 


6  INTRODUCTION 

one,  only,  all-sufficient  hope  for  humanity.  His  em- 
phasis is  everywhere  placed  on  the  practical  mean- 
ings and  applications  of  the  Cross,  as  such  Cross 
is  revealed  in  the  Promise  and  sacrifices  of  the  Old 
Testament,  and  especially  as  it  is  manifested  in  the 
life,  death,  words,  and  works  of  Jesus,  and  as  it 
was  interpreted  by  the  Apostles  and  early  Christians, 
and  has  been  incarnated  and  interpreted  by  victori- 
ous Christian  leaders  through  the  passing  genera- 
tions. He  shows  that  all  religious  efforts  that  are 
not  based  on  the  Cross,  as  the  central  theme  of  all 
Christian  life  and  effort,  must  sooner  or  later  fail. 
In  such  study,  he  also  traces  the  various  missionary 
movements  from  the  time  of  Christ  until  the  pres- 
ent, showing  that  the  basic  principles  of  every  en- 
during missionary  movement  have  had  both  their 
origin  and  inspiration  in  the  Cross  of  Christ. 

As  it  has  been  in  the  past,  so  must  it  be  in  the 
future,  the  author  insists,  for  all  abiding  Christian 
work  that  is  to  be  done  today  and  tomorrow.  He 
insists  that  the  sacrificial  principle  of  the  Cross 
points  the  only  way  for  all  enduring  progress  in 
Christ's  cause,  the  principle  being  stated  by  Jesus  in 
the  words:  "Except  a  corn  of  wheat  fall  into  the 
ground  and  die,  it  abideth  alone;  but  if  it  die,  it 
bringeth  forth  much  fruit."  This  principle  is  the 
explanation  of  the  courageous  endurance,  the 
abounding  joy,  the  unquenchable  zeal  of  the  Chris- 
tian missionary  today  and  all  the  days  the  world 
over.     It  is  not  a  "  new  gospel "  that  the  world 


INTRODUCTION  7 

needs,  but  rather  the  right  interpretation  and  em- 
phasis of  the  Cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  as 
the  way  of  salvation  for  all  mankind,  and  as  the 
sufficient  motive  and  inspiration  of  all  worthy  and 
enduring  Christian  service. 

This  book  has  a  distinctly  vital  message — a  mes- 
sage supremely  needed  for  these  momentous  days — 
and  it  is  my  earnest  hope  that  it  may  have  a  wide 
reading  by  the  Christian  forces  in  all  lands. 

Geo.  W.  Truett. 


PREFACE 

THE  political,  social,  and  religious  unrest  seen 
throughout  the  world  at  this  time  is  of 
profound  significance,  and,  no  doubt  points 
to  the  rapid  approach  of  a  new  epoch  in  the  affairs 
of  men.  The  crumbling  of  the  antiquated  forms 
of  government,  the  growing  opposition  to  handHng 
humanity  in  mass,  the  keen  resentment  to  all  forms 
of  religion  that  do  not  seek  to  meet  the  real  needs 
of  the  human  family  in  our  relation  to  the  Father 
and  each  other,  all  point  with  increasing  certainty 
that  there  is  a  new  day  coming  wherein  the  voice 
of  the  world's  Saviour  will  be  heard  with  more 
eager  ears  and  obedient  hearts  as  soon  as  this  voice 
is  clearly  understood  as  the  one  hope  in  the  world 
of  strife. 

Though  chaos  prevails  in  the  political,  social,  and 
religious  affairs  of  all  the  great  families  of  the 
earth,  we  are  not  blinded  by  the  wars  and  fierce 
struggles  now  prevailing  to  the  fact  that  all  great 
strides  upward  in  the  human  family  are  preceded 
by  great  changes  in  the  existing  order.  We  are 
getting  ready  to  see  truth  as  the  Master  saw  it  and 
make  life  what  He  meant  it  to  be  in  His  kingdom 
that  is  to  rule  in  the  hearts  of  all  men.    The  work 


10  PREFACE 

of  destruction  has  been  going  on  for  a  number  of 
weary  years.  The  greater  and  joyful  task,  for  which 
all  else  has  preceded,  that  of  reconstruction,  ought 
to  begin  speedily.  Every  child  of  God  wishes  that 
the  work  of  reconstruction  commence  on  enduring 
basis  according  to  all  the  needs  of  the  human  family. 

In  vain  have  the  nations  of  the  earth  tried  to  solve 
their  own  problems.  Too  long  have  we  looked  to 
our  own  wisdom  and  strength.  We  must  look  to 
the  only  hope,  that  of  Christianity.  Most  of  the 
friends  of  the  human  family  realize  this;  but  what 
kind  of  Christianity  will  meet  the  needs  of  the  hour? 
What  is  the  basic  principle  that  has  given  Christian- 
ity its  growth  and  permanency  with  advancing 
years?  At  a  time  like  this  when  the  opportunities 
are  boundless  to  expand  the  kingdom  of  God,  and 
the  nations  of  all  the  earth  are  seemingly  wanting  to 
know  the  wisdom  and  power  of  the  Father,  we  do 
well  to  seek  out  the  one  all  important  truth  or  reality 
in  Christianity  and  give  due  emphasis  to  this  and 
relate  wisely  all  our  efforts  to  this  reality  in  our 
benign  work  of  reconstruction  and  thereby  meet  the 
world's  need  in  the  present  crisis.  By  so  doing  all 
forces  may  be  conserved  and  unified  in  solving  the 
world's  problems  to  the  glory  of  God  the  Father, 
and  certainly  to  the  good  of  all  the  peoples  of  this 
earth. 

In  seeking  to  find  the  one  central  truth  of 
Christianity,  I  believe  we  will  find  that  it  is  the 
Cross  of  Christ.    The  Cross  was  the  one  reality  that 


PREFACE  11 

determined  the  Saviour's  every  act  in  relation  to  the 
Father  and  the  needs  of  the  wayward  family.  The 
distressing,  crying  needs  of  the  family  the  world 
over  plead  with  us  to  seek  not  for  the  theories  of 
the  Cross,  but  its  practicable  bearing  upon  the  prob- 
lems of  our  day,  and  thus  we  will  see  unfolding  in 
all  its  measureless  power  and  beauty  the  sublime 
hfe  of  Jesus  our  Lord.  If  the  Cross  of  Christ  is 
to  meet  the  world's  needs,  every  believer  must  give 
first  place  to  the  Cross  in  his  own  life.  This  is 
absolutely  necessary  if  Christianity  is  truly  to  con- 
quer as  the  Master  meant. 

The  great  suffering  and  heroic  sacrifices  made 
during  the  recent  struggles  of  Europe  and  the  world 
by  our  men  and  women  have  prepared  us  to  under- 
stand as  never  before  the  meaning  of  our  Lord's 
Great  Sacrifice.  We  can  understand  the  ever 
supreme  truth  that  except  the  grain  fall  into  the 
ground  and  die,  it  abideth  alone;  but  if  it  die,  it 
bringeth  forth  much  fruit  (and  that  of  the  right 
kind  to  save  the  world).  If  God's  children  can 
learn  this  great  truth  the  world  over,  the  sacrifices 
of  the  past  years  will  not  have  been  made  in  vain. 
The  lessons  of  the  world  war  can  be  understood  and 
made  a  permanent  blessing  to  all  mankind  as  we 
understand  the  one  tragedy  of  all  the  ages,  the 
Cross  of  Christ  in  all  its  bearings.  In  order  that 
this  Tragedy  may  be  more  fully  understood  and 
appropriated  in  the  struggles  of  the  approaching 
age,  we  need  to  consider  anew  the  meaning  of  the 


12  PREFACE 

Lord's  death  for  all  men,  and  how  that  all  men  hav- 
ing died  with  Him  may  henceforth  live  unto  God. 
It  is  here  we  find  the  one  hope  of  the  world's  recon- 
struction as  the  Father  would  have.  We  study 
Christianity's  one  foundation  of  world  conquest  as 
revealed  to  us  in  God's  Word,  as  seen  in  soldiers 
of  the  advancing  kingdom,  the  missionary,  and  then 
examine  the  history  of  expanding  Christianity  in 
the  great  movements  of  the  ages,  and  in  all  this  we 
will  learn  what  is  most  needed  in  the  present  work 
of  reconstruction. 

In  sending  forth  this  volume  to  all  who  wish 
their  lives  to  count  for  the  most  in  the  world's  recon- 
struction, I  acknowledge  with  much  gratitude  the 
help  and  encouragement  I  have  received  from  Dr. 
C.  B.  Williams,  President  of  Howard  College, 
Birmingham,  Ala.,  U.  S.  A.,  Dr.  A.  C.  Dixon, 
late  of  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,,  London, 
England,  and  Dr.  Longdon,  Chinkiang,  China,  for 
many  years  missionary  of  the  Methodist  Foreign 
Mission  Board. 

J.  R.  S. 
Canton,  China. 


CONTENTS 

Part  I. — Definition 
I     The  Cross:  Its  Importance  .        .       17 
II     The  Cross  and  Creeds  ...       24 

III  The  Cross:  Its  Practical  Mean- 

ing AND  Application  ...       30 

IV  The  Cross:  Its  Practical  Mean- 

ing AND  Application — (Cont.)       48 

Part  II. — The  Cross  and  the  Missionary,  a  Soldier 
for  World  Conquest         v 

V    The  Cross  Makes  Possible  the 

Home  Basis 69 

VI     Sends    the    Missionary    to    the 

Foreign   Fields    ....       75 

VII     The  Cross  is  the  Power  of  His 

Message 83 

VIII     The  Cross  Enables  Him  to  Illus- 
trate Message  by  Life      .       .       94 

13 


14  CONTENTS 

IX    The   Cross    Holds   Him    to    His 

Work  in  the  Lord's  Way         .     112 

X    The  Cross  Assures  Final  Victory     122 

Part  III. — The  Verification  of  History 

XI     The    Mission    Movements    that 

Have   Failed        .        .        .        .137 

XII     The  Early  Christian  Era  .        .153 

XIII  The  Forerunners  of  the  Refor- 

mation     165 

XIV  The  Reformation  .        .       .       -     ^77 

XV    The  Beginnings  of  Mission  Work 

in  India  and  Persia    .        .        .183 

XVI     Early     Mission     Activities     in 

Burma  and  Africa      .       .       .     193 

XVII     Early  Mission  Efforts  in  China 

AND  Japan 200 

XVIII     Other     Prominent     Missionary 

Movements 213 

XIX    The    Cross    and    the    Present 

World  Situation        .       .       .     22y 


PART  I 
DEFINITION 


THE  CROSS:  ITS  IMPORTANCE 

IN  the  present  consideration  of  the  Cross  the 
broader  meaning  of  the  word  is  constantly 
used.  The  fine  distinctions,  which  many  of  the 
writers  in  the  past  have  made  between  the  actual 
work  of  the  Cross  and  the  results  which  accrue  to 
us,  e.g..  Cross  and  Redemption,  Cross  and  Justifica- 
tion, etc.,  will  not  be  maintained  closely  in  the  pres- 
ent discussion ;  but  we  will  follow  the  usual  theologi- 
cal thought  of  the  present  day,  making  the  word 
refer  to  the  sufferings  of  Christ  in  their  widest  rela- 
tionships. The  necessity  for  the  Cross  and  its  prac- 
tical bearings  on  the  problems  of  world  conquest 
will  be  considered  in  chapters  three  and  four.  It  is 
only  necessary  to  understand  that  we  have  in  mind 
the  fuller  meaning  in  seeking  to  bring  out  the 
supreme  importance  of  this  doctrine. 

No  question  in  Christianity  stands  apart  from  the 
Cross.  All  virile  life  and  activity  in  His  kingdom's 
onward  march  have  their  fountain  head  in  right 
ideas  of  this  subject.  Heresies  of  every  kind  di- 
rectly or  indirectly  have  their  beginnings  in  either 
false  or  perverted  views  of  the  suffering  and  death 
of  our  Lord.    The  writers  of  the  New  Testament 

17 


18  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

exhausted  the  language  of  their  day  in  seeking  to 
reveal  the  great  realities  of  this  all  inclusive  sub- 
ject, referring  to  it  by  figure,  by  illustration,  giving 
man's  viewpoint,  and  then  God's;  yet  everywhere 
emphasizing  its  incomparable  importance  as  its 
meaning  gradually  dawned  on  them.  What  seemed 
at  first  strange  and  unnecessary  became  the  one 
theme  of  their  writing,  the  one  hope  of  their  work, 
the  inspiration  of  their  widening  activities.  The 
Cross  is  not  an  interesting  and  important  doctrine  in 
Christianity:  it  is  the  one  source  of  all  doctrine,  the 
one  fountain  head  of  all  life  that  is  life  indeed — 
the  solid  ever  enduring  life,  having  its  birth  and 
growth  in  the  eternal  truth  of  God. 

Willis  J.  Beecher  says  in  reference  to  the  Promise 
Doctrine  (which  is  really  the  doctrine  of  the  Cross 
or  Atonement  as  seen  in  the  Old  Testament)  in  The 
Prophets  and  the  Promise :  "  In  fine,  this  body  of 
literature  which  we  call  the  Old  Testament  is  so 
thoroughly  permeated  with  the  idea  of  the  Promise 
that  this  affects  the  whole  of  its  contents.  What- 
ever in  it  is  not  of  the  nature  of  statement  of  fact 
concerning  the  Promise  is  likely  to  be  connected 
with  it  by  way  of  illustration  or  suggestion." 

Again.  "  A  perfectly  definite  conception  of  his- 
torical unity  and  continuity  underlie.s>  the  New 
Testament  interpretations  of  the  Old  Testament,  and 
equally  underlies  the  Old  Testament  itself.  This 
conception  makes  the  Promise  to  be  the  centre  and 
arranges  all  the  facts  according  to  their  relations 


ITS  IMPORTANCE  19 

to  the  Promise.  In  this  the  best  historians  of  our 
time  do  not  surpass  the  men  of  the  Bible,  and  most 
men  who  have  treated  of  these  themes — the  themes 
of  which  the  BibHcal  men  wrote — are  far  behind 
them.  It  is  not  correct  to  say  that  this  Promise  is 
the  golden  cord  running  throughout  the  whole 
Bible.  It  is  the  backbone  from  which  the  whole 
body  of  literature  of  God's  Word  springs.  It  is 
the  trunk  from  which  all  the  branches  and  leaves 
have  their  beginning."  Yes,  this  is  true  not  only 
of  the  New  Testament,  but  the  entire  Bible.  If 
we  take  the  doctrine  of  the  Cross  out  of  the  Bible, 
we  would  have  a  mass  of  disconnected  statements, 
some  of  which  would  be  helpful  to  moralists,  puz- 
zling to  theologians,  interesting  to  historians,  con- 
tributing some  light  to  the  philologists  and  scien- 
tists of  different  ages;  but  this  Book  we  call  "the 
sacred  Bible "  would  become  common  literature 
along  with  the  writings  of  the  world's  sages  in  dif- 
ferent nations. 

Whereas  the  Cross  is  "  the  centre  from  which  the 
entire  literature  of  the  Bible  springs  and  the  life  of 
all  pure  Christianity,  it  is  immeasurably  so  in  ref- 
erence to  World-wide  Conflict."  P.  T.  Forsyth: 
"  When  a  church  ceases  to  be  missionary,  it  loses 
its  touch  with  the  Master,  and  naturally  dies  of 
itself.  The  inspiration  of  Christian  Missions  has 
been  the  Cross  of  Christ  more  than  the  sermons 
of  men.  Philanthropy  is  due  to  the  sorrow  of  men. 
Other  lines  of  Christian  work  may  prosper  when 


20  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

the  evangelistic  message  of  the  Cross  is  minimized 
or  tlie  doctrine  of  the  Cross  is  erroneously  preached. 
Missions  must  thrive  in  the  first  degree  upon  the 
objective  power  and  holy  nature  of  the  Cross  of 
Christ,  and  not  upon  subjective  experiences.  These 
will  fail  when  the  great  testing  time  comes  after  the 
romance  has  passed  away  as  it  surely  will.  Then 
if  the  missionary  does  not  find  the  Cross,  the  moral 
key  of  the  world,  it  will  go  hard  with  his  faith. 
Theolog}^  of  the  Cross  is  more  important  than  our 
love  and  zeal  for  the  lost."  Then  again  when  the 
missionary  comes  to  the  real  test  on  the  field  and 
sees  the  awful  degradation  of  the  heathen  life,  and 
he  is  separated  from  the  life  and  environments  of 
his  brethren,  he  will  likely  lose  hope  in  these  people. 
But  for  the  hope  in  sinful  humanit}-,  which  Christ 
had  and  inspired  in  us  by  the  Cross  and  His  own 
faith,  we  would  falter  in  the  testing  days. 

P.  T.  Forsyth  furthermore  well  says :  "  A  church 
that  is  not  missionar}^  will  cease  to  be  a  church.  A 
church  cold  in  missions  has  lost  the  Cross.  It  may 
have  religion,  but  not  the  Gospel.  It  may  have 
social  friendliness,  human  sympathies,  good  music, 
intelligent  views,  excellent  intentions,  but  not  the 
power  of  the  Gospel.  Where  the  spirit  of  the  Cross 
is  there  is  pressure  of  spiritual  debt  and  Christian 
chivalry.  Missions  are  compulsory  in  a  church  by 
its  own  high  law  if  it  is  to  remain  a  church.  By 
the  law  of  the  spiritual  life  the  missionless  church 
betrays  that  it  is  a  Crossless  church;  and  becomes 


ITS  IMPORTANCE  21 

a  faithless  church,  an  unblest  church,  a  mere  re- 
ligious society,  and  finally,  perhaps,  a  mere  cultured 
clique." 

And  furthermore :  "  The  Cross  and  its  sufferings 
is  the  high  school  of  Christianity.  The  Cross  and 
its  victory  is  the  charter  of  the  church.  The  church 
that  goes  deepest  into  the  Cross,  that  lives  most  on 
the  Cross,  shall  draw  all  nations  unto  it.  A  Christi- 
anity that  does  not  regard  Christ  as  the  Son  of  God 
in  the  real  full  sense  as  the  God  of  grace,  redeeming 
and  reconciling  the  world,  will  never  be  ardent 
about  Missions  " — in  their  truest  sense,  giving  the 
Gospel  and  depending  on  its  power  and  transfor- 
mation to  bring  about  the  best  and  most  permanent 
results. — "  If  any  church  member  had  told  Paul 
he  was  not  interested  in  world-wide  missions,  Paul 
would  have  told  him  he  was  not  a  Christian,  and  had 
no  interest  in  Christ.  Paul  was  a  missionary  by 
that  which  made  him  a  Christian.  Christ  was  world- 
wide or  no  Christ  with  Paul.  A  church's  interest 
in  missions  is  its  standard  to  show  its  interest  in 
the  Cross,  and  vice  versa.  People  may  be  religious 
and  have  no  interest  in  missions,  but  not  true  to  the 
Cross — not  Christians." 

R.  F.  Horton :  "  '  Christ  died  for  our  sins  accord- 
ing to  the  Scriptures.'  That  sentence  sums  up  the 
whole  Bible.  The  four  Gospels  teach  us  that  Christ 
died,  and  the  rest  of  the  New  Testament  that  He 
died  for  our  sins.  The  Old  Testament  by  allegory, 
type,  and  many  other  ways  prepared  the  human  race 


22  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

for  the  greatest  of  all  truth  revealed  in  the  New 
Testament — '  that  Christ  died  for  our  sins/  " 

When  we  become  blind  to  or  indifferent  about  the 
core  of  the  Bible,  we  will  become  castaways  as  true 
preachers  and  saints  of  God.  To  let  anything  ex- 
plain away,  deny,  or  keep  us  from  making  this  mes- 
sage the  one  theme  of  our  ministry  to  the  world, 
our  preaching  will  become  insipid,  "  we  are  as  am- 
bassadors without  credentials."  This  explains  why 
so  many  methods  are  used  in  our  churches  which 
are  not  true  to  the  spirit  of  the  Bible,  partake  too 
much  of  worldliness.  This  often  causes  us  to  resort 
to  false  weapons  that  fail  us  in  the  crucial  battle 
of  winning  others  to  Christ. 

R.  W.  Dale :  "  As  long  as  the  doctrine  of  Atone- 
ment is  maintained  in  its  entirety,  Christianity  itself, 
and  the  peace  and  blessedness  of  all  who  believe  in 
Christ,  are  beyond  the  reach  of  danger;  but  if  it  is 
rejected  or  anyway  impaired,  the  whole  structure 
of  the  Christian  faith  must  sink  into  decay  and 
ruin."  "  The  Cross,  according  to  the  consent  of 
all  churches,  and  all  the  evangelistic  traditions  of 
Christendom,  is  the  supreme  power  of  the  Gospel." 
Cadman :  **  Moreover  can  we  rest  the  absolutism 
and  finality  of  Jesus  on  anything  less  than  the  last 
complete  outpouring  of  His  soul  unto  voluntary 
death  for  man's  salvation?  I  do  not  think  we  can, 
and  it  is  requisite  that  we  place  larger  emphasis 
upon  this  holy  mystery  of  our  life  through  Christ's 
death,  the  substantial  soul  and  secret  of  missionary 


ITS  IMPORTANCE  23 

progress  in  all  ages  of  the  church.  '  For  there  is 
one  God,  and  one  Mediator  between  God  and  man, 
Himself  man,  Christ  Jesus  who  gave  Himself  a 
ransom  for  all ! '  This  is  the  creed  for  us  to  use  in 
our  mission  work — the  expanding  work  of  Christi- 
anity/' 

Christ  as  He  entered  the  dark  shadows  that  came 
from  the  near-by  Cross  said :  *'  For  this  purpose 
I  came  into  the  world,"  and  as  these  dark  shadows 
passed  away  with  all  the  suffering  and  the  agony 
of  the  life  given  on  the  Cross  for  the  glory  of  the 
Father  and  the  redemption  of  the  world,  He  said, 
"  It  is  finished."  The  central  event  of  all  history, 
many  of  the  students  of  humanity  tell  us,  is  the 
Christ  of  reality;  and  cannot  we  gladly  agree  with 
this  statement,  adding  a  still  more  important  fact, 
the  centre  of  His  career,  around  which  all  else  re- 
volves, is  the  Cross?  The  holy  men  of  old  who 
wrote  God's  Word,  the  early  church  fathers,  the 
great  leaders  of  expanding  Christianity  of  past  ages, 
and  those  who  are  doing  most  to  bring  about  His 
world-reign  at  present  forcibly  witness  to  this  as 
being  the  greatest  of  all  truth :  the  reality  that  makes 
possible  Christianity's  purity  at  home,  the  ability  to 
live  and  thrive  and  conquer  all  error  and  master 
all  hearts  by  giving  perfect  life  for  all  nations  and 
peoples  everywhere. 


II 

THE  CROSS  AND  CREEDS 

CREEDS,  rightly  understood,  are  necessary 
things.  Christianity  can  no  more  exist  with- 
out creeds  than  the  body  can  without  bone 
and  sinew;  yet  in  Christianity  mere  formal  creeds 
are  not  only  worthless,  but  oftentimes  become  hin- 
drances to  the  truth.  "  The  letter  killeth,  but  the 
spirit  giveth  life'*  (2  Cor.  3.6).  The  prophets  of 
the  Old  Testament,  especially  the  later  writers, 
mourned  because  the  people  sought  to  escape  the 
ethical  demands  of  the  law  by  purely  formal  service. 
**  Away  with  your  sacrifices "  which  were  an 
abomination  because  they  did  not  represent  the  heart 
of  the  giver. 

Jesus  laid  down  no  forms  and  burdened  none  by 
rules.  He  went  far  beyond  all  this  and  gave  life, 
reaching  the  basal  principles  of  all  true  worship 
and  service  of  those  who  come  before  the  Father 
with  pleasing  hearts.  Decidedly  the  greatest  force 
in  Christianity  is  a  life — the  life  of  Jesus;  however 
all  life  in  the  development  is  bound  to  express  itself 
in  forms,  but  forms  are  to  be  the  result  of  develop- 
ment, and  life  is  in  no  sense  produced  by  forms.    It 

24 


THE  CROSS  AND  CREEDS  25 

may  be  manifested  naturally  and  proven  to  the 
world  by  the  beautiful  forms,  which  true  life  from 
above,  will  give  forth. 

It  is  not  strange  that  Jesus  gave  us  no  theological 
dogmas  about  the  Cross.  Those  who  walked  with 
Him,  saw  Him  with  their  own  eyes,  and  touched 
Him  with  their  own  hands,  also  gave  us  no  elabo- 
rate discussion  of  the  How  and  the  Why  of  the 
Cross.  Paul,  who  went  more  fully  into  the  mys- 
teries of  this  subject  than  any  one  else,  did  not 
seek  to  write  a  treatise.  He  said  most  about  the 
great  revelation,  which  Jesus  made  known  to  him, 
in  discussing  other  things.  These  New  Testament 
writers  were  too  much  concerned  about  the  glorious 
realities  and  the  surpassing  blessings  which  were 
theirs  and  the  world's  by  reason  of  the  Sacrifice. 
They  were  chiefly  concerned  about  making  these 
things  known  to  the  world,  and  did  not  have  time  to 
discuss  the  mysteries  that  did  not  directly  concern 
them.  Most  assuredly  the  mystery  of  all  mysteries 
was  seen  '*  in  the  Lamb  that  was  slain  from  the 
foundation  of  the  world";  but  the  glorious  fact 
that  He  was  slain  for  their  sins,  was  buried,  rose 
again,  and  ever  sitteth  on  the  right  hand  of  God 
to  make  intercessions  for  them,  was  enough  to  fill 
their  hearts  with  constant  praise  and  thankfulness 
and  compel  them  to  give  their  lives  in  glad  and  full 
surrender  to  be  offered  up  daily  for  His  service. 
To  the  metaphysical  mind  of  the  Greeks  the  Cross 
was  foolishness,  and  to  the  Jews  a  stumbling-block ; 


26  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

but  to  those  who  believed  in  the  early  days,  it  was 
more  than  life,  it  was  life  abundant.  It  was  the 
source  and  propelling  force  of  this  life  abundant. 
When  this  was  true,  Christianity  was  missionary 
and  overcame  all  obstacles. 

In  Christianity's  early  progress  the  great  enemies 
from  without,  that  first  met  the  messengers  of 
the  Cross,  were  overcome.  Afterwards  when  the 
new  faith  became  popular  and  the  lines  that  held 
them  close  to  the  Christ-life  were  slacked,  all  man- 
ner of  heresies  came  flocking  in.  Soon  we  see 
the  churches  demanding  conformity  to  certain  ex- 
ternals, formalism  taking  precedence  over  life,  con- 
fessions and  creeds  crushing  the  sublime  faith  and 
simplicity  of  the  early  followers  of  Jesus.  H.  C. 
Vedder:  "We  can  see  (in  the  early  history  of  the 
churches)  in  the  substitution  of  formalism  for  spir- 
ituality, devotion  to  the  externals  of  religion  tak- 
ing the  place  of  living  faith.  To  this  one  root  may 
be  traced  in  turn  every  one  of  the  corruptions  of 
the  church,  all  its  aberrations  of  doctrine  and  prac- 
tice." Statements  or  theories  about  the  Cross  are 
not  the  important  thing.  Much  has  been  written 
that  is  false,  much  that  is  true,  still  more  that  is 
helpful  if  properly  related;  yet  the  main  thing  at 
the  present  hour  to  meet  the  pressing  needs  is  to 
get  at  the  great  abiding  realities  of  the  Cross,  and 
see  how  these  furnish  the  ground  and  framework 
of  world-wide  Conquest. 

It  is  an  encouraging  fact  that  so  much  thought 


THE  CROSS  AND  CREEDS  27 

is  being  given  to  the  study  of  the  Cross  by  all 
classes  of  theologians.  This  is  a  sign  of  life  and 
interest  in  the  workings  of  our  Master.  Old  truths 
are  taking  new  forms,  new  phases  of  the  all- 
inclusive  subject  are  being  emphasized,  and  in  the 
main  most  of  these  discussions  are  helping  rather 
than  hindering  a  better  and  fuller  understanding  of 
the  Saviour's  pouring  out  His  life  unto  death.  We 
must  not  make  the  mistake  of  thinking  that  these 
different  writers  are  revealing  any  new  truth,  but 
simply  clearing  away  the  debris,  and  letting  that 
which  has  been  in  God's  Word  all  the  while  shine 
forth  in  its  fulness.  To  get  a  correct  and  ade- 
quate view  of  this  doctrine  we  need  to  pass  by  the 
handed  down  theories,  which  are  sacred  with  age 
and  made  precious  to  us  by  the  thoughts  of  those 
dear  in  the  theological  world,  stand  aloof  from  new 
revelations  evolved  from  the  enlightened  consciences 
of  men  of  the  present  day — products  of  the  highest 
development  of  the  advancing  Church,  and  go  back 
to  the  simple  and  incomparably  sublime  truth  re- 
vealed in  God's  Word.  In  this  Book  we  will  find 
the  fundamental  teaching  that  concerns  our  subject, 
as  well  as  all  others  that  vitally  concern  His  chil- 
dren in  reconstructing  the  world. 

After  laying  all  needed  emphasis  on  the  fact  that 
truth  must  not  be  hampered  by  its  mere  formal  ex- 
pressions, however,  those  who  are  to  win  this  world 
to  His  obedience  must  ever  have  clear  conceptions 
and  deep,  unmovable  convictions  as  to  what  is  in- 


28  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

volved  in  the  Cross  and  their  relation  to  it.  Not 
to  see  the  truth  clearly  and  hold  to  it  firmly  will 
not  only  make  our  message  powerless,  but  will  give 
rise  to  all  kinds  of  error.  We  must  know  the  truth 
positively  if  we  are  to  conquer  and  give  our  message 
continuous  living  vitality  in  the  world  struggle. 
This  is  absolutely  necessary  if  we  expect  our  work 
to  have  that  permanency  and  life-producing  purity 
that  healthy  and  robust  truth  alone  can  give. 

It  is  very  true  that  the  writers  of  different  ages 
and  countries  will  emphasize  certain  phases  of  the 
Cross  probably  most  needed  in  their  day,  most  easily 
understood  by  their  countrymen;  yet  men  who  are 
friends  and  not  enemies  of  Him,  who  is  the  truth, 
will  never  seek  by  word  or  figure  to  withhold  or 
attenuate  the  changeless  realities  of  the  Cross. 
These  are  what  every  earnest  servant  of  the  Mas- 
ter ought  to  seek  to  know  and  perpetuate  with  posi- 
tive, heart-resting  certainties  to  all  men.  Many 
things  are  now  combining  to  urge  us  to  give  the 
awakening  world  the  truth  in  its  simplest,  purest, 
and  most  vital  and  positive  form.  To  fail  to  do 
so  now  when  the  conditions  are  so  favourable  to 
its  growth,  we  would  do  the  world  an  irreparable 
injustice,  be  disloyal  to  our  Master,  and  forever 
bring  shame  upon  ourselves  as  recreants  to  duty  at 
the  psychological  hour  of  all  history  when  the  whole 
human  family  is  concerned  directly  or  indirectly  by 
the  outcome  of  the  problems  now  facing  the  servants 
of  the  King.     Nothing  less  than  the  true  positive 


THE  CROSS  AND  CREEDS  29 

message  of  the  Cross  will  meet  the  great  needs  of 
our  brothers  the  world  over  as  they  seek  light  and 
guidance  in  their  upward  struggle.  Only  as  we 
have  the  truth  in  its  simplicity  and  purity,  preached 
unequivocally  as  the  one  remedy  to  meet  their  sore 
needs,  can  we  go  forth  unto  the  battle  with  assur- 
ance of  faith  that  we  will  conquer  all  foes  and  plant 
Christianity  supremely  in  all  lands. 


Ill 


THE  CROSS:   ITS   PRACTICAL   MEANING 
AND  APPLICATION 

THERE  are  certain  mysteries  about  the  Cross 
which  man,  doubtless,  will  never  solve.  Just 
as  in  the  most  practical  and  most  common- 
place realities  of  every-day  life  there  are  mysteries 
which  the  most  scholarly  minds  of  all  ages  have  not 
solved,  so  with  the  Lord's  Offering.  There  are 
mysteries  hidden  back  in  the  councils  of  the  Father 
and  the  Son,  who  is  "  the  Lamb  slain  from  the  foun- 
dation of  the  World,"  "  according  to  the  eternal 
purpose  which  He  purposed  in  Christ  Jesus  our 
Lord,"  as  "  He  hath  chosen  us  in  Him  before  the 
foundation  of  the  world."  There  are  some  ques- 
tions in  the  eternal  purpose  of  the  Godhead  that  our 
narrow  visions  cannot  now  understand :  it  is  not 
necessary  for  us  to  know  these  things.  However,  it 
is  quite  unthinkable  that  He,  who  called  us  and  sent 
us  out  to  conquer  this  world,  would  leave  us  in 
doubt  about  the  main  doctrine  of  the  church's  life  as 
this  doctrine  concerns  us  in  the  warfare.  That 
which  we  need  to  know  to  encourage  and  to  inspire 
and  make  sure  the  final  victory  must  surely  be 

80 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  31 

plain  to  the  soldier  who  can  only  march  with  a 
strong  heart  and  an  unfaltering  step  as  he  knows 
his  marching  orders  and  the  source  of  all  strength. 

We  should  welcome  every  effort  to  bring  the 
great  realities  of  the  Cross  in  keeping  with  the 
form  of  thought  and  life  in  our  present  age  as  long 
as  these  efforts  are  sincerely  made  in  search  of  the 
all-comprehensive  and  sufficient  truth  adequately  re- 
vealed in  God's  Word  for  the  needs  of  His  people 
in  all  ages  and  places  and  conditions.  If  we  are 
anxious  to  know  the  truth  for  His  service,  willing 
to  abide  by  its  consequences,  adjusting  our  lives  ac- 
cording to  its  highest  and  fullest  requirements, 
surely  our  heavenly  Father  will  satisfy  the  earnest 
and  sincere  desire  of  hearts  in  touch  with  Him. 

The  More  Practical  Phases  of  the  Cross,  as  they 
concern  man,  are  the  following:  (a)  The  Barriers 
of  Man's  Approach  to  God  have  been  Removed, 
(b)  Sin  has  been  Rightly  Revealed — made  to  Ap- 
pear "  Exceeding  Sinful,"  (c)  The  Father  Gra- 
ciously Loves  all  Men,  (d)  Christ  Died  for  the 
Sins  of  the  World,  (e)  The  Oneness  of  the  Human 
Family,  (f)  Discipleship  means  Union  with  Christ 
to  save  all  Mankind — entering  into  the  fellowship 
of  His  sufferings.  These  are  the  more  practical 
phases  of  the  subject  as  they  concern  us  in  our 
world  conquest.  The  whole  world  is  so  much  in 
need  of  the  tried  and  the  true,  and  so  much  is  plain 
in  the  Cross,  that  we  shall  find  it  most  profitable 
to  give  ourselves  to  the  study  and  application  of 


32  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

these  things  rather  than  to  the  uncertainties  that 
do  not  primarily  concern  us  in  bringing  the  world 
to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Christ 
Jesus.  "  My  people  are  destroyed  for  lack  of 
knowledge,"  but  lack  of  knowledge  of  Him  who  is 
the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life. 

I.    The  Barriers  of  Man's  Approach  to  the  Father 
Have  Been  Removed 

The  great  need  of  the  human  race  has  ever  been 
to  be  able  to  approach  the  Father's  holy  presence. 
This  need  has  been  realized  by  all  who  seek  to  be 
pure  and  noble  and  God-like ;  yet  as  man  thinks  upon 
his  condition  and  learns  of  his  inner  life,  he  sees 
that  sin  and  disobedience  have  come  up  like  moun- 
tains separating  him  from  the  Father,  who  is  holi- 
ness and  righteousness  altogether.  The  sense  of 
disobedience  and  guilt  drove  our  first  parents  to 
hide  from  the  face  of  Jehovah.  It  was  the  sense 
of  guilt  bearing  so  heavily  upon  the  Jews  which 
made  them  fear  to  approach  the  Holy  One.  "  No 
man  can  see  God  and  live  "  was  on  the  lips  of  many 
devout  sons  of  Abraham. 

Sacrifices  were  instituted  to  remove  the  barriers 
of  man's  approach  to  God,  and  thus  enable  him  to 
appear  before  Jehovah  without  the  guilt  of  his  trans- 
gressions forcing  -him  without  the  pale  of  the  cov- 
enant. Through  sacrificial  offerings  given  with  a 
true  purpose,  the  giver  could  approach  the  Father 
and  cteim  the  blessings  of  true  fellowship. 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  33 

The  Author  of  Hebrews  shows  how  Christ, 
through  the  eternal  Spirit,  offering  Himself  without 
spot  to  God  for  sin  once  at  the  end  of  the  world, 
doing  that  which  the  Law  could  not  do,  in  that  it 
made  none  perfect,  thus  "  He  purged  our  consciences 
from  dead  works  to  serve  the  living  God,"  atoning 
for  sins  which  the  sacrifice  of  animals  could  never 
do ;  hence  we  are  invited  "  to  come  boldly  to  the 
throne  of  grace  that  we  may  obtain  mercy  and  find 
grace  to  help  in  time  of  need."  "  He  appeared  to 
put  away  sin  by  the  offer  of  Himself  once  offered 
to  bear  the  sins  of  many."  "  By  the  which  will  we 
are  sanctified  through  the  offering  of  the  body  of 
Jesus  Christ  once  for  all."  In  Eph.  2. 13-16  we 
notice  that  those  who  were  once  afar  off  are  made 
nigh  by  the  blood  of  the  Cross,  removing  the  bar- 
riers that  "  He  might  reconcile  us  unto  God."  Also 
in  Eph.  3.13 :  "In  Christ  we  have  boldness  and  ac- 
cess with  confidence  by  the  faith  of  Him."  Rom. 
5.if. :  "  We  have  peace  with  God  through  Him,  and 
access  by  faith  into  the  grace  wherein  we  stand." 

Sins  which  have  kept  us  from  approaching  God 
are  covered,  and  He  no  longer  regards  them  as  we 
come  into  His  holy  presence.  Psalm  32. if.: 
"  Blessed  is  he  whose  transgression  is  forgiven, 
whose  sin  is  covered.  Blessed  is  the  man  unto  whom 
the  Lord  imputeth  not  iniquity."  "  Paul  shows  in 
Rom.  4.yL,  that  these  blessings — iniquity  forgiven, 
sin  covered,  and  no  longer  imputed — come  not 
through  the  law  and  to  the  circumcized  only;  but 


34  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

they  come  to  all  who,  through  faith,  are  heirs  of 
faithful  Abraham.  This  righteousness  shall  be  im- 
puted to  us  "  if  we  believe  on  Him  that  raised  up 
Jesus  our  Lord  from  the  dead;  who  was  delivered 
for  our  offences,  and  raised  again  for  our  justi- 
fication.'* Rom.  4.24f. :  Also  "  God  was  in  Christ, 
reconciling  the  world  unto  Himself,  not  imputing 
their  trespasses  unto  them.  .  .  For  He  hath  made 
Him  to  be  sin  for  us,  who  knew  no  sin;  that  we 
might  be  made  the  righteousness  of  God  in  Him  " 
(2  Cor.  5.  19  and  21). 

The  figure  of  washing  and  cleansing  us  with  His 
blood  is  used,  doubtless,  referring  to  the  removal 
of  all  guilt  and  impurity  that  bar  our  approach  to 
God.  Paul  in  writing  to  the  Corinthian  church  says 
to  some  of  the  members  who  formerly  lived  vile 
and  licentious  lives,  like  many  of  the  unbelievers 
in  that  wicked  city :  **  But  ye  are  washed,  but  ye 
are  sanctified"  (i  Cor.  6.1 1).  In  Rev.  1.5  and 
7.14,  respectively,  we  notice :  "  Unto  Him  that  loved 
us  and  washed  us  from  our  sins  in  His  own  blood." 
"  Washed  their  robes,  and  made  them  white  in  the 
blood  of  the  Lamb." 

The  demands  of  the  perfect  Law,  which  man 
could  not  fulfil,  hence  stood  as  a  barrier  to  his  ap- 
proach to  the  Father,  have  been  fulfilled  in  Christ 
Jesus.  He  fulfilled  the  demands  of  the  Law,  and 
we,  who  are  in  Christ,  are  no  longer  bound  by  the 
Law;  but  we  are  children  who  enjoy  the  liberty 
and  blessings  of  the  free.     Since  we  are  in  Christ, 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  35 

dominated  by  His  spirit,  moved  by  a  higher  law, 
which  includes  all  the  requirements  of  the  Ten 
Words  that  have  relation  for  all  time  to  man's 
obedience  to  the  Father.  "  Therefore,  we  conclude 
a  man  is  justified  by  faith  without  the  deeds  of 
the  law"  (Rom.  3.28).  "Sin  shall  have  no  more 
dominion  over  you :  for  you  are  not  under  the  law, 
but  under  grace  "  (Rom.  6.14) ;  and  verse  18,  "  Be- 
ing made  free  from  sin,  ye  become  the  servants  of 
righteousness,"  and  22,  "  Having  your  fruit  unto 
holiness."  (Compare  Rom.  7.4,  6;  8.3f. ;  10.4.) 
*'  Christ  has  redeemed  us  from  the  curse  of  the  law, 
being  made  a  curse  for  us"  (Gal.  3.13).  He  was 
"  made  under  the  law  to  redeem  those  under  the 
law,  that  we  might  receive  the  adoption  of  sons. 
No  more  a  servant,  but  a  son  "  (Gal.  4.4,  5,  7). 

^.    Sin    has    been    Rightly    Revealed — ''Made    to 
Appear  Exceeding  Sinful.'' 

Sin  has  been  regarded  very  differently  by  the  va- 
rious peoples  in  the  world  according  to  their  civili- 
zation, laws,  and  development.  It  is  often  thought 
of  as  a  question  of  propriety,  the  person  who  of- 
fends the  rules  of  propriety  has  sinned.  To  com- 
ply with  these  one  is  free  from  sin.  Others  think 
of  sin  as  transgressing  the  laws  of  their  country. 
Sin  in  China  is  most  always  thought  of  in  man's 
relation  to  his  fellowmen.  The  five  blessings  which 
the  gods  are  asked  to  bestow  on  the  family  have 
purely  human  relationships — man's  relationship  to 


36         THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

his  family  and  country  or  nation.  Above  the  door 
of  nearly  every  dwelling  house  we  see  the  written 
petition  for  these  five  blessings.  They  ask  the  gods 
to  give  these  blessings,  and  the  one  who  has  them 
is  blessed  above  all  just  in  the  degree  he  possesses 
them  above  all  others.  Not  one  of  the  blessings 
in  any  way  refers  to  man's  relation  to  God.  Man 
does  not  sin  in  his  relation  to  the  gods.  He  may 
bring  bad  luck  to  his  home  and  business  because 
he  has  offended  the  gods  in  failing  to  supply  their 
necessities;  yet  the  idea  of  impurity  in  the  heart 
being  an  offence  to  the  gods  and  counted  sin,  does 
not  enter  the  mind  of  the  average  non-Christian 
Chinese. 

The  majority  of  the  Jews,  doubtless,  thought  of 
sin  as  being  largely  a  matter  of  breaking  laws,  trans- 
gressing, stepping  across  the  mark  of  propriety; 
however,  there  were  devout  spiritual  men  through- 
out their  history  who,  realized  that,  keeping  the 
forms  of  the  law  without  the  right  attitude  of  the 
heart,  was  an  abomination  to  God.  Jehovah  re- 
quired the  heart  with  every  sacrifice.  Sin  is  always 
wrong,  not  because  the  law  said  so,  but  the  law 
said  so  because  it  is  wrong.  Sin  is  of  the  heart  in 
its  relation  to  Jehovah. 

We  see  something  of  the  heinousness  of  sin  by 
what  it  takes  to  check  its  development  and  remove 
its  consequences.  We  are  sure  our  loving  heav- 
enly Father  has  never  demanded  any  more  sacri- 
fice and  suffering  for  sin  and  the  disturbed  condi- 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  37 

tion  it  had  brought  into  the  world  than  is  necessary 
to  enable  Him  to  forgive  the  sinner  and  withhold 
from  him  the  full  penalty  justly  due,  while  the  eter- 
nal principles  of  justice,  righteousness,  and  holiness 
are  maintained.  We  cannot  but  believe  that  in  re- 
quiring certain  things  before  the  sinner  is  permitted 
to  come  boldly  unto  the  throne  of  grace — past  sins 
covered,  and  new  life  and  spirit  given  that  will  make 
him  hate  sin  in  the  future  because  his  Father  hates 
it — God  had  the  sinner's  welfare  in  mind  as  well 
as  the  requirements  of  these  eternal  principles  of 
justice,  righteousness,  and  holiness.  Man's  infinite 
needs  moved  Him  as  well  the  preservation  of  His 
honour  and  attributes.  Sin  in  its  very  nature  neces- 
sitated that  a  method  be  inaugurated  not  to  con- 
trol, but  to  destroy  it.  Sin  in  its  relation  to  man 
as  well  as  its  relation  to  God  required  this.  This 
could  be  done  and  was  done  by  the  Cross  borne 
by  Jesus,  the  God-man.  Jehovah  was  willing  to 
save  all  who  kept  the  law  perfectly,  not  that  this  in 
itself  abrogated  sin;  but  it  brought  the  sinner  in 
such  relation  with  Jehovah  as  to  obtain  the  full 
benefits  of  His  grace :  hence  it  has  been  true  from 
the  beginning  that  the  just  shall  live  by  faith,  and 
by  grace  are  ye  saved  and  not  of  works. 

No  mere  formal  sacrifice  could  ever  make  it  pos- 
sible for  the  Father  to  forgive  sins.  When  forms 
were  an  expression  of  the  right  attitude  of  the  heart, 
they  had  their  value,  but  never  the  mere  forms, 
^amuel  said  t9  .Saul,  who  thought  so  lightly  of 


38  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

obedience  (i  Sam.  15.22):  ''Hath  the  Lord  as 
great  delight  in  burnt  offerings  and  sacrifices  as  in 
obeying  the  voice  of  the  Lord?  Behold  to  obey  is 
better  than  sacrifice,  and  to  hearken  than  the  fat 
of  rams."  "  The  sacrifice  of  the  wicked  is  an  abom- 
ination to  the  Lord  "  (Prov.  15.8).  "  The  sacrifice 
of  the  wicked  is  abomination:  how  much  more, 
when  he  bringeth  it  with  a  wicked  mind?  "  (Prov. 
21.27).  "  Sacrifice  and  offering  Thou  did  not  de- 
sire .  .  .  burnt  offering  and  sin  offering  hast  Thou 
not  required  "  (Psalm  40.6).  In  Isaiah  1.11-15  we 
see  how  Jehovah  felt  towards  their  sacrifices  and 
offerings.  He  delights  not  in  them,  does  not  re- 
quire such  offerings  in  His  court.  Their  ceremon- 
ies and  offerings  are  vain,  an  abomination,  "  away 
with  them  "  as  long  as  their  hands  are  full  of  blood 
and  oppression,  and  their  heart  is  far  from  Him. 
He  will  not  hear  them  when  they  pray — such  forms 
with  a  wicked  heart  are  detested  by  the  pure  and 
holy  One.  In  Hos.  6.6  and  elsewhere  in  many  of 
the  expressions  of  the  Minor  Prophets,  we  see  the 
Lord's  attitude  to  formal  service  when  the  heart 
is  not  right  towards  Him.  There  is  no  question 
from  these  citations  that  Jehovah  looked  on  the 
heart  rather  than  the  forms  whereby  His  rebellious 
people  sought  to  escape  the  weightier  demands  of 
the  law.  He  hated  their  smoking  incense  and  ani- 
mal sacrifice  while  their  hearts  were  polluted  by 
foul  deeds. 
Not  only  mere  formal  offerings  could  not  atone 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  39 

for  sins,  no  offerings  could  really  satisfy  the  de- 
mands of  the  holy  and  righteous  One.  Sin  was  of 
such  a  nature  that  no  offering  by  man's  hands  could 
really  atone  for  it.  Offences  wittingly  committed 
against  God — and  all  transgression  in  its  last  analy- 
sis certainly  meant  offence  against  him,  and  not  the 
law  only — could  not  be  satisfied  by  sacrifices  and 
offerings.  Certain  offerings  and  sacrifices  atone 
for  crimes  specified  in  the  covenant  relations;  yet 
these  only  temporarily  satisfied  or  obtained  God's 
favour,  and  enabled  Him  to  turn  His  face  from  the 
transgressions  of  His  people.  These  efforts  on 
man's  part  could  not  wholly  remove  sin,  and  meet 
the  requirements  of  the  Father's  attributes  of  holi- 
ness, justice,  and  righteousness.  Psalm  143.2 : 
"  Enter  not  into  judgment  with  Thy  servant :  for 
in  Thy  sight  shall  no  man  living  be  justified."  David 
says  in  Psalm  51  that  his  sin  was  too  great  to  be 
covered  by  any  offering.  He  pleaded  God's  mercy 
with  a  broken  and  contrite  heart.  Acts  13.39: 
"  And  by  Him  all  that  believe  are  justified  from 
all  things  from  which  we  could  not  be  justified  by 
the  law  of  Moses.'*  Rom.  3.20:  "Therefore,  by 
the  deeds  of  the  law  shall  no  flesh  be  justified  in 
His  sight :  for  by  the  law  is  the  knowledge  of  sin.'* 
(For  further  corroborative' passages  see  Rom.  8.3; 
Gal.  2.16,  3.21;  Heb.  7.18  f.,  9.9,  also  10.  i,  4,  6, 
8,  II.) 

Sin  is  too  great  to  be  atoned  for  by  man's  ef- 
forts even  if  he  followed  the  requirements  of  the 


40         THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

law.  It  required  more  than  man  could  do.  Far 
the  majority  of  the  human  race  look  on  sin  so 
lightly  as  to  think  that  it  is  purely  acts  of  impro- 
priety, misfits,  mishaps,  can  be,  therefore,  atoned 
for  by  efforts  on  man's  part.  One  atoning  for  the 
sins  of  another  was  not  conceived  by  the  human 
heart.  The  heathen  in  their  sacrifices  do  not  think 
of  atoning  for  sins,  but  rather  to  appease  the  wrath 
of  the  deities.  The  Jews  in  the  time  of  Christ  did 
not  think  that  the  Messiah  by  His  death  would  make 
an  atonement  for  sin.  They  seemed  to  think  that 
an  atonement  might  be  made  for  sins  by  alms, 
prayers,  and  good  deeds.  They  had  some  vague 
idea  that  one  could  thus  atone  for  the  sins  of  an- 
other; yet  from  the  time  of  the  age  of  the  greater 
prophets  until  the  Messiah  did  come,  there  were 
but  few  who  rose  to  the  conception  of  one  in  God's 
sight  making  amends  or  atonement  for  another. 
The  Jews,  like  the  world  around  them,  had  begun 
to  think  of  sin  so  lightly  as  to  believe  that  man 
could  adjust  matters  himself.  The  whole  of  the 
human  family  at  the  coming  of  Christ  had  im- 
perfect ideas  of  both  the  heinousness  of  sin  and 
its  consequences.  Jesus  came  not  only  to  reveal 
the  Father,  but  to  reveal  ourselves,  make  known 
to  us  the  realities  and  magnitude  of  sin  in  the  heart 
"  The  death,  which  is  the  supreme  revelation  of 
Divine  love,  is  also  the  supreme  revelation  of  hu- 
man guilt."— R.  W.  Dale. 

Much  of  the  Master's  teaching  was  to  reveal  to 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  41 

the  world  the  nature  of  sin.  The  Sermon  on  the 
Mount  is  largely  given  to  make  known  to  His  dis- 
ciples that  sin  is  of  the  heart  in  its  attitude  to  God. 
"  If  thy  eye  cause  thee  to  offend,  pluck  it  out:  for 
it  is  better  for  thee  to  enter  into  the  kingdom  of 
God  with  one  eye  than  having  two  eyes  to  be  cast 
into  hell."  It  is  better  for  us  to  lose  any  member 
of  the  body  than  to  permit  it  to  cause  us  to  sin. 
In  fact,  if  we  owned  the  whole  world,  this  would 
not  be  a  gift  sufficient  to  atone  for  one  man's  soul. 
"  For  what  is  a  man  profited  if  he  shall  gain  the 
whole  world  and  lose  his  own  soul?  or  what  shall  a 
man  give  in  exchange  for  his  soul  ?  "  Over  and 
over  again  the  Master  sought  not  only  to  remove 
the  errors  of  the  people  concerning  God,  but  He 
made  known  to  them  sin  in  all  its  awful  conse- 
quences. 

Although  we  can  truthfully  say  that  the  very 
nature  of  God,  His  holiness,  justice,  righteousness, 
mercy,  and  love,  and  His  desire  to  bring  man  in 
obedient  relationship  in  His  kingdom  made  the 
Cross  inevitable;  yet  it  is  sin  that  had  broken  the 
harmony  and  produced  the  conditions  that  the  Cross 
alone  could  meet.  Therefore  we  can  also  truth- 
fully say  that  sin  made  it  absolutely  necessary  for 
Christ  to  die.  His  suffering  must  be  experienced, 
the  Cross  must  be  borne,  was  emphasized  again  and 
again  by  Christ  as  He  sought  to  reveal  to  them 
its  meaning.  His  suffering  and  death  was  some- 
thing that  they  thought  unnecessary,  and  brought 


42  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

to  them  shame  and  disappointment;  however,  the 
Messiah  told  them  there  was  no  other  way,  it  must 
be  done.  "  From  that  time  forth  began  Jesus  to 
show  unto  His  disciples  how  He  must  go  unto  Jeru- 
salem and  suffer  many  things  of  the  elders  and 
chief  priests  and  scribes,  and  be  killed,  and  be  raised 
again  the  third  day"  (Matt.  16.21).  "He  began 
to  teach  them,  that  the  Son  of  man  must  suffer 
many  things  ....  and  be  killed,  and  after  three 
days  rise  again"  (Mark  8.31).  "I  have  a  bap- 
tism to  be  baptized  with;  and  how  am  I  straitened 
till  it  be  accompHshed"  (Luke  12.50).  "O  fools 
and  slow  of  heart,  to  believe  all  that  the  prophets 
have  spoken:  ought  not  Christ  to  have  suffered 
these  things,  and  enter  into  His  glory?"  (Luke 
24.25  f.).  "  Thus  it  is  written  and  thus  it  behooved 
Christ  to  suffer  "  (Luke  24.46).  Paul  as  his  man- 
ner was  reasoned  from  the  Scripture,  "  That  Christ 
must  needs  have  suffered,  and  risen  again  the  third 
day  "  (Acts  i7.3f.).  "  For  if  righteousness  (come) 
through  the  law,  then  Christ  died  in  vain"  (Gal 
2.21).  "  For  if  there  had  been  a  law  given  which 
could  have  given  life,  verily  righteousness  should 
have  been  by  the  law  "  (Gal.  3.21 ). 

Not  only  does  Christ  teach  that  He  must  die,  but 
that  His  death  was  the  fulfilment  of  the  law  and 
the  prophets.  His  death  was  not  a  mere  accident. 
It  was  absolutely  necessary  to  meet  the  conditions 
that  sin  had  brought  about,  and  this  was  foretold 
by  the  holy  men  as  they  were  moved  by  the  Holy 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  43 

Ghost  to  write  the  things  of  God.  The  death  on 
the  Cross  came  as  the  culminating  fact  of  His  Hfe, 
which  was  the  fulfilment  of  prophecy  and  the  con- 
summation of  the  eternal  plans  of  the  Godhead, 
thus  making  it  possible  for  "  God  to  be  just  and 
justifier  of  him  who  believeth  in  Jesus,"  redeeming 
sinful,  disobedient  man  to  be  holy  and  pure,  fitted 
for  temples  of  God  on  earth.  '*  God's  nature  re- 
quires the  removal  of  sin,  our  good  requires  it, 
and  the  Cross  accomplishes  it." 

Many  have  thought  that  it  was  not  the  pierc- 
ing of  the  hands  and  feet  of  the  Redeemer  that 
brought  death.  His  companions  with  the  same 
wounds  were  far  from  dead  when  He  passed  away. 
Jesus  was  Himself  strong  to  the  end.  He  uttered 
a  great  cry.  He  did  not  die  from  the  loss  of  blood. 
If  so  he  would  have  gradually  grown  weaker,  and 
His  death  would  have  been  a  slow  one.  No  one 
in  history  has  been  known  to  die  so  soon  wounded 
as  He  was.  Even  the  soldiers  were  surprised  to 
find  life  extinct.  "  He  died  from  a  broken  heart." 
**  The  wickedness  of  the  world  crushed  His  life 
out."  The  soul  suffered  far  more  than  the  body 
did  from  the  flesh  wounds.  His  death  was  caused 
by  the  sin  He  came  to  atone  for,  not  so  much  by 
the  physical  wounds,  but  by  that  which  made  His 
death  necessary,  that  which  He  had  to  suffer  by 
reason  of  the  world's  sin.  Nowhere  do  we  see 
the  heinousness  of  sin  so  forcibly  portrayed  as  on 
the  Cross.     No  one  who  sees  what   Christ  suf- 


44  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

fered  to  overcome  the  power  and  penalty  of  sin 
can  look  on  sin  lightly.  Right  conceptions  of  the 
Cross  give  us  right  views  of  sin  and  its  penalty. 

J.    God  Graciously  Loves  All  Men. 

The  natural  heart  is  slow  to  comprehend  the  fact 
that  God  loves  all  men.  Man  everywhere  would 
rather  emphasize  the  attributes  of  justice,  right- 
eousness, holiness,  purity,  etc.,  than  the  one  thing 
that  John  gives  as  revealing  the  Father  to  the  way- 
ward world — "  God  is  love."  The  human  family 
greatly  needs  to  know  God  in  His  tender  sympa- 
thetic relation  with  this  race,  though  marred  by 
sin,  with  hearts  blinded,  and  moral  natures  de- 
praved. The  good  and  the  pure  can  easily  think  of 
Him  as  being  "  Love  " ;  but  the  rebellious  and  de- 
praved, with  crude  affections  dwarfed  by  evil  paths 
long  followed,  need  a  revelation  from  God  to  know 
that  God  loves  them.  Jesus,  who  was  "  the  bright- 
ness of  His  glory  and  the  express  image  of  His 
person,"  declared :  "  He  that  hath  seen  Me  hath 
seen  the  Father."  This  same  Jesus  resorted  to 
many  methods  to  manifest  the  Father's  love.  He 
used  every  possible  method  that  would  appeal  to 
the  intelligence  of  His  hearers  and  arouse  their 
hearts  to  a  sense  of  God's  love  for  them.  Many 
of  the  parables,  much  of  His  teaching,  and  His 
deeds  of  love  and  mercy  and  sympathy  during  His 
earthly  ministry  were  given  to  manifest  the  Father's 
compassionate  love. 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  45 

In  emphasizing  God's  love  we  must  not  minimize 
His  attributes  of  holiness,  justice,  and  righteous- 
ness. His  love  must  always  preserve  these.  *'  The 
dignity  of  man  himself  is  better  secured  if  it  break 
in  the  maintenance  of  God's  holiness  than  if  that 
holiness  suffer  defeat  for  man's  mere  existence." 
As  P.  T.  Forsyth  says :  "  God's  love  then  is  love 
in  holy  action,  in  forgiveness,  in  redemption.  It  is 
the  true  love  for  sinners  of  a  God  above  all  things 
holy,  whose  holiness  makes  sin  damnable  as  sin  and 
love  active  as  grace.  It  (His  love)  can  only  act  in 
a  way  that  will  do  justice  to  holiness,  and  restore 
it."  To  emphasize  His  love  out  of  due  proportion 
to  these  attributes  would  produce  a  flabby  Chris- 
tianity that  fails  to  take  due  account  of  the  real- 
ities of  sin,  the  wrecked  condition  of  the  human 
family,  the  glory  of  the  Father,  and  the  eternal 
absolute  good  of  man.  The  Cross  does  these  things, 
and  we  must  remember  that  emphasis  placed  on 
the  love  of  God  in  His  Word  will  in  no  way  weaken 
these  other  attributes. 

The  love  which  the  Father  manifests  to  us  is 
not  the  ordinary  human  love,  but  rather  all  true 
human  love  is  like  the  faint  glimmering  light  from 
the  distant  star  that  radiates  the  light  from  the 
sun.  The  castaways,  hated  by  polite  society,  were 
taken  up  by  Jesus  and  assured  that  they  were  the 
recipients  of  the  Father's  care  and  love  which  ex- 
tend over  "  the  just  and  the  unjust."  ''  The  fatted 
calf  and  best  robe  "  were  speedily  provided  for  the 


46  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

ungrateful  spendthrift  to  assure  him  of  his  place 
in  the  home  that  sin  and  prodigality  had  taken  from 
him.  The  Master's  life  upon  the  earth,  as  far  as 
known  to  us,  was  a  continual  oblation  upon  the 
altar  of  human  need,  given  freely  and  fully  to  those 
whose  slowness  of  understanding  and  dulness  of 
heart  not  only  made  them  ungrateful,  but  spurn 
His  unselfish  deeds  of  love  and  mercy;  however, 
Jesus  told  them  plainly  that  in  their  rejection  of 
Him  they  rejected  the  Father  also.  "  My  Father 
worketh  hitherto,  and  I  work"  (Jno.  5.17). 

Jesus  came  to  the  earth,  and  gladly  gave  His 
life  a  ransom  for  many,  yet  it  was  the  Father  who 
sent  Him  and  whose  will  He  came  to  do.  It  is 
the  Father's  love  as  well  as  the  Son's  that  prompted 
the  Son  to  give  His  life  for  us.  In  Gethsemane 
Jesus  prayed,  Not  His  will,  but  the  Father's  be 
done  (Matt.  26.39).  "God  so  loved  the  world 
that  He  gave  His  only  begotten  Son"  (Jno.  3.16). 
"  My  meat  is  to  do  the  will  of  Him  who  sent  Me  " 
(Jno.  4.34).  "I  came  down  from  heaven,  not  to 
do  mine  own  will,  but  the  will  of  Him  who  sent 
Me"  (Jno.  6.38).  "Lo,  I  come  to  do  Thy  will, 
O  God"  (Heb.  10.9).  We  see  the  love  of  the 
Father  in  all  that  Jesus  did  for  us. 

Shedd :  "  Divine  favour  is  seen  in  providing  the 
remedy  for  our  sins  (Rom.  5.10)  :  *  For  if,  when 
we  were  enemies,  we  were  reconciled  to  God  by  the 
death  of  His  Son,  much  more  being  reconciled,  we 
shall  be  saved  by  His  life.'     In  getting  at  the  seat 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  47 

and  centre  of  the  Divine  passion  we  should  seek  it 
rather  in  the  work  of  Atonement  than  in  the  act 
of  forgiveness:  rather  in  the  cause  than  in  the  ef- 
fect. That  He  should  make  the  Atonement  is  the 
mystery  (i  Jno.  3.16) — *  Hereby  perceive  we  the 
love  of  God  because  He  laid  down  His  life  for  us.'  " 
(Compare  i  Jno.  4.9,  11;  Rom.  5.8;  Eph.  5.2;  Jno. 
3.16.) 

R.  W.  Dale :  "  The  death  of  Christ  is  the  final 
expression  of  the  infinite  love  of  God  for  all  man- 
kind." The  selfish  strife  and  turmoil  the  world  over 
needs  this  love  of  God  to  harmonize  and  unify  all 
forces  in  the  work  of  reconstruction.  The  unselfish 
love  seen  on  the  Cross  is  the  only  hope  in  the  present 
crisis. 


IV 


THE  CROSS:    ITS   PRACTICAL   MEANING 
AND  APPLICATION  (Continued) 

4.    Christ  Died  for  the  Sins  of  the  World. 

THE  most  casual  readers  of  the  Bible  can 
see  that  Jesus  died  for  the  sins  of  the 
world.  It  was  because  of  sin  in  the  human 
family  that  He  died.  This  is  quite  plain  to  most 
readers.  The  great  body  of  Biblical  critics  of  all 
shades  of  thought  are  convinced  that  His  death  was 
the  result  of  plan.  It  was  absolutely  necessary  to 
deal  with  sin  adequately  before  He  could  lead  us 
to  God;  but  just  what  is  meant  by  saying  that  He 
died  for  the  sins  of  the  world,  how  His  death  be- 
came efficacious  for  our  sins?  Around  these  and 
like  questions  gather  the  great  problems  of  the 
Cross. 

As  has  already  been  mentioned,  the  first  disciples 
of  the  Master  did  not  expect  the  Messiah  to  die 
for  their  sins.  The  prophets  and  psalmists  of  old 
in  their  higher  conceptions  of  Divine  truth  did  ex- 
pect the  Sufferer  to  come,  and  it  is  quite  evident 
that  they  expected  the  righteous  Servant  to  make 

48 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  49 

an  atonement  for  the  sins  of  the  people.  The  Jews 
in  the  time  of  Christ  expected  the  Messiah  to  de- 
liver them  from  earthly  oppression,  but  there  is 
nothing  to  indicate  that  even  the  most  devout 
thought  this  would  be  done  by  a  death  of  humilia- 
tion and  shame.  The  fact  that  none  of  His  dis- 
ciples could  even  be  taught  that  the  Messiah  "  must 
suffer  many  things  "  and  die  for  the  sins  of  the 
people  until  He  actually  did  suffer  and  die  and  rose 
from  the  grave  indicates  beyond  a  doubt  that  none 
of  them  expected  the  Promised  One  thus  to  re- 
deem Israel,  much  less  the  world. 

Since  Christ  taught  the  meaning  of  His  death 
and  said  it  was  the  fulfilment  of  the  law  and  the 
prophets,  it  behooves  us,  who  take  Him  as  our 
omniscient  Teacher  and  perfect  Model,  to  exam- 
ine what  the  law  and  the  prophets  meant  by  the 
Atonement,  and  see  wherein  Chrisfs  death  and  suf- 
fering, and  the  meaning  He  put  on  it,  corresponds 
with  the  original  conception  of  the  Atonement.  By 
this  method  we  do  not  necessarily  obtain  the  full 
significance  of  the  Cross,  but  we  find  the  essential 
idea  as  emphasized  by  the  Master. 

Christ  in  teaching  the  meaning  of  His  death  con- 
nected it  with  the  Atonement  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. The  sacrifice  that  burned  on  the  altar  of 
every  devout  child  of  Jehovah  from  the  accepted 
offering  of  righteous  Abel  till  the  better  and  en- 
during sacrifice  of  God's  only  Son  were  types  of 
the  coming  One  who  offered  Himself  for  the  sins 


50  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

of  the  entire  world.  Whether  the  devout  offerer 
always  saw  this,  we  are  not  sure;  yet  Christ  saw 
the  relation,  and  made  it  known  to  His  disciples 
just  as  soon  as  He  could  prepare  them  for  receiv- 
ing the  truth.  He  used  the  symbols  that  they  under- 
stood and  the  prophecies  of  the  Old  Testament,  at 
least,  as  the  starting-point  to  explain  the  signifi- 
cance of  His  sacrifice.  His  heart  seemed  to  be  full 
of  the  thoughts  of  the  suffering  Servant  described 
in  Is.  53,  and  elsewhere  in  the  O.  T.,  saying  that 
in  His  life  were  these  prophecies  fulfilled.  After 
He  read  in  Is.  where  it  says  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord 
is  upon  Me  because  He  has  anointed  Me  to  preach 
the  Gospel  to  the  poor,  open  the  eyes  of  the  blind, 
etc..  He  said :  "  This  day  is  this  scripture  fulfilled 
in  your  ears  ''  (Lu.  4.i6ff.);.  "  For  I  say  unto  you 
this  that  was  written  must  be  accomplished  in  Me  " 
(Lu.  22.37).  "  Ought  not  Christ  to  have  suffered 
these  things  .  .  .  and  beginning  at  Moses  and  all 
the  prophets,  He  expounded  to  them  in  all  the 
scriptures  the  things  concerning  Himself "  (Lu. 
24.26f.).  Vr.  44,  "  These  things  written  in  the  law 
of  Moses,  in  the  prophets,  and  in  the  psalms  con- 
cerning Him  must  be  fulfilled." 

Apart  from  the  Synoptical  Gospels  the  connec- 
tion is  rigidly  maintained.  "  Behold  the  Lamb  of 
God  that  beareth  or  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the 
world"  (Jno.  1.29).  Doubtless  John  had  in  mind 
the  very  thought  of  Is.  53.7.  Philip  explained  to 
the  eunuch,  who  was  reading  Is.  53.7,  8,  "  He  was 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  51 

led  as  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter ;  and  hke  a  lamb  be- 
fore his  shearer,  so  he  opened  not  his  mouth,"  etc., 
that  this  referred  to  Christ  (Acts  8.32-35).  ''We 
are  redeemed  with  the  precious  blood  of  Christ  as 
of  a  lamb  without  blemish  and  without  spot "  ( i 
Pet.  1. 19).  John  saw  in  the  midst  of  the  throne 
and  the  elders  stood  a  Lamb  as  it  had  been  slain 
(Rev.  5.6).  "Worthy  is  the  Lamb  that  was  slain 
to  receive  power,  wisdom  "  (Rev.  5.12).  These  ci- 
tations from  the  words  of  the  Master,  and  those 
who  wrote  concerning  Him  in  the  New  Testament, 
make  it  plain  that  they  thought  the  Cross  was  the 
fulfilment  of  prophecy,  and  that  Is.,  53rd  chapter, 
is  the  highest  conception  of  the  Saviour's  work  as 
seen  in  prophecy. 

The  Master  not  only  sought  to  reveal  to  His 
followers  that  the  Cross  was  the  fulfilment  of 
prophecy,  but  he  sought  in  many  ways  to  explain  its 
meaning.  The  Jews,  and  even  His  most  intimate 
disciples,  did  not  know  what  His  death  meant  dur- 
ing His  earthly  career.  His  death  was  all  a  sur- 
prise and  a  mystery  at  first.  The  idea  of  it  brought 
shame  and  dread  to  His  disciples.  They  were  will- 
ing to  fight  to  avert  it.  When  the  sad  event  did 
come,  they  lost  heart  and  thought  the  whole  work 
of  the  Messiah  had  failed.  Jesus  alone  could  ex- 
plain the  significance  of  His  death.  No  writer  in 
the  New  Testament  ever  claimed  to  know  anything 
about  the  ''  mystery  "  except  what  Christ  revealed 
to    him,    hence   it   is    of    primary    importance    to 


52  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

learn    what    Christ    Himself    taught    His    death 
meant. 

He  speaks  of  His  death  ''  as  a  ransom  for  many  '* 
— ''  The  Son  of  man  came  not  to  be  ministered 
unto,  but  to  minister,  and  give  His  life  a  ransom 
for  many  "  (Matt.  20.28;  Mark  10.45).  He  seems 
to  teach  here  that  we  are  sold  unto  sin — a  bond- 
slave to  sin — and  He  gave  His  life  as  a  ransom  to 
set  us  free.  Godet  says :  "  He  offered  a  ransom  for 
humanity  in  the  prison  house  of  sin — not  something 
that  was  of  pleasure  to  Him,  but  Himself — that 
we  might  enjoy  the  pure  air  of  the  open,  freed  from 
the  stains  of  the  prison  walls,  where  filth  and  pain- 
ful odours  stifle  our  souls."  He  offered  Himself  to 
bring  about  our  eternal  release.  The  idea  is  greatly 
elaborated  elsewhere  in  the  New  Testament,  Paul, 
who  delivered  unto  others  that  which  he  received 
not  from  man,  not  of  himself,  but  of  God,  says: 
"He  gave  His  life  a  ransom  for  all"  (i  Tim. 
2.5f.)  :  "He  gave  Himself  for  us  to  redeem  us 
from  all  iniquity  and  purify  unto  Himself  a  pecu- 
liar people,  zealous  of  good  works"  (Titus  2.14). 
"  We  have  been  redeemed  through  His  blood " 
(Eph.  1.7).  "  Bought  with  a  price  "  (i  Cor.  6.20). 
"We  have  redemption  through  His  blood"  (Col. 
1. 14).  "Redeemed  from  the  curse  of  the  law'' 
(Gal.  3.13).  The  church  He  purchased  with  His 
own  blood  (Acts.  20.28).  Also  we  see  that  Christ 
obtained  eternal  redemption  for  us  through  His 
blood  (Heb.  9.12).     Those  of  every  kindred  and 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  53 

tongue,  people,  and  nation  were  redeemed  by 
His  blood  (Rev.  5.9).  Those  who  follow  the  Lamb 
whithersoever  He  goeth  were  redeemed  from  among 
men  (Rev.  14.4).  Denying  the  God  who  bought 
them  is  called  heresy  (2  Pet.  2.1).  "  The  blood  of 
Jesus  Christ  cleanseth  from  all  sin"  (i  Jno.  1.7). 

"  The  church's  one  foundation 
Is  Jesus  Christ  her  Lord. 
She  is  His  new  creation 
By  water  and  the  blood. 

"  From  heaven  He  came  and  sought  her, 
To  be  His  holy  bride; 
With  His  own  blood  He  bought  her, 
And  for  her  hfe  He  died." 

Jesus  also  spoke  of  His  death  as  a  voluntary  act, 
prompted  by  love,  to  lay  down  His  life  for  His 
sheep.  **  No  man  taketh  it  (His  life)  from  Me, 
but  I  lay  it  down  of  Myself.  I  am  the  good  Shep- 
herd :  the  good  Shepherd  giveth  His  life  for  the 
sheep.  I  lay  down  My  life  for  the  sheep  "  (Jno. 
10. 1 1  and  15.18).  Compare  Rom.  5.7f. ;  i  Jno. 
3.16. 

The  Master  sought  to  explain  more  fully  the 
significance  of  His  death  in  instituting  the  Lord's 
supper,  which  is  to  keep  forever  in  remembrance 
His  sacrifice  for  us  and  all  the  world.  **  For  this  is 
the  blood  of  the  new  testament,  which  is  shed  for 


54  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

many  for  the  remission  of  sins"  (Matt.  26.28). 
"  This  is  My  body  which  is  broken  for  you."  "  This 
cup  is  the  new  testament  in  My  blood."  "  For  as 
oft  as  ye  eat  this  bread  and  drink  this  cup  ye  do 
show  the  Lord's  death  till  He  come  "  (Mark  14.22- 
24;  Lu.  22. igf.;  I  Cor.  11.23-26).  "Whom  God 
has  set  forth  to  be  a  propitiation  through  faith  in 
His  blood  to  declare  His  righteousness  for  remis- 
sion of  sins  that  are  past,  through  the  forbearance 
of  God"  (Rom.  3.25).  "Much  more  then  being 
now  justified  by  His  blood,  we  shall  be  saved  from 
wrath  through  Him"  (Rom.  5.9).  "In  whom 
we  have  redemption  through  His  blood,  the  forgive- 
ness of  sins,  according  to  the  riches  of  His  grace." 
(Eph.  1.7).  "  Without  the  shedding  of  blood  there 
is  no  remission  "  (Heb.  9.22).  Compare  Eph.  2.13, 
15;  Col.  1. 14,  20;  Rev.  1.5  and  7.14. 

"  Lord,  I  believe  Thy  precious  blood, 
Which  at  the  mercy  seat  of  God, 
Forever  doth  for  sinners  plead, 
For  me,  e'en  for  my  soul,  was  shed." 

In  explaining  His  death  to  His  disciples,  show- 
ing that  it  was  the  fulfilment  to  prophecy,  and  espe- 
cially Is.  53,  He  must  have  made  the  impression 
that  His  suffering  was  foretold  and  its  inner  and 
highest  meaning  expressed  in  the  following: 
"  Surely  He  has  borne  our  griefs  and  carried  our 
sorrows.  .  .  .  But  He  was  wounded  for  our  trans- 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  55 

gressions;  He  was  bruised  for  our  iniquities:  the 
chastisement  of  our  peace  was  upon  Him;  and  with^ 
His  stripes  we  are  healed.  .  .  .  And  the  Lord  hath 
laid  on  Him  the  iniquity  of  us  all.  He  was  op- 
pressed, and  He  was  afflicted,  yet  He  opened  not 
His  mouth :  He  is  brought  as  a  lamb  to  the  slaugh- 
ter" (Is.  534-7). 

His  early  followers  saw  in  the  Cross  the  fol- 
lowing :  "  He  was  delivered  for  our  offences,  and 
was  raised  again  for  our  justification"  (Rom. 
4.25).  "For  He  hath  made  Him  to  be  sin  for 
us,  who  knew  no  sin;  that  we  might  be  made  the 
righteousness  of  God  in  Him"  (2  Cor.  ^.21). 
"Who  gave  Himself  for  our  sins"  (Gal.  1.4). 
"  So  Christ  was  offered  once  to  bear  the  sins  of 
many"  (Heb.  9.28).  "Who  His  own  self  bare 
our  sins  in  His  own  body  on  the  tree  "  ( i  Pet. 
2.24).  "  For  Christ  has  once  suffered  for  sins,  the 
just  for  the  unjust"  (i  Pet.  3.18).  "And  ye 
know  He  was  manifested  to  take  away  our  sins  " 
(i  Jno.  3.5).  The  writers  of  the  New  Testament 
recognized  this  wonderful  prophecy  as  giving  the 
main  feature  of  the  Cross  as  well  as  the  manner. 

Strong :  "  There  is  an  ethical  principle  in  the 
Divine  nature  which  demands  all  sin  must  be  pun- 
ished— the  holiness  of  God.  This  ethical  principle 
is  reflected  in  the  conscience.  Man's  conscience  can- 
not be  satisfied  until  amends  have  been  made  for 
transgressions,  for  sins  committed.  The  Atone- 
ment is  the  satisfaction  of  the  ethical  demand  of 


56  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

the  Divine  nature  by  the  substitution  of  Christ's 
penal  sufferings  for  the  punishment  of  the  guilty. 
It  answers  the  ethical  demand  of  the  Divine  nature 
that  sin  be  punished  if  the  offender  is  to  go  free  " 
(Rom.  3.25f.,  R.  V.). 

Frederic  Godet :  "  It  is  God  that  took  the  initia- 
tory and  made  the  conditions  of  man's  redemption. 
*  The  Lord  laid  on  Him  the  iniquity  of  us  all '(  Is. 
53.6  f.).  *  Blessed  is  he  whose  sin  is  covered,  and 
to   whom  the   Lord   imputeth   not   iniquity'    (Ps. 

32.lf.). 

"  The  *  for  me '  understood  in  the  sense  of  *  in 
my  place '  is,  in  my  eyes,  the  centre  of  the  Gospel, 
as  it  is  the  nerve  of  the  Christian  life." 

Shedd :  "  Jesus  lays  stress  on  His  own  suffering 
as  the  chief  element  of  His  Atonement.  He  re- 
fused anodyne  to  deaden  the  pain.  The  forgive- 
ness is  the  non-infliction  of  the  suffering  upon  the 
offender.  If  the  substitute  victim  suffered,  then 
the  criminal  shall  be  released  from  suffering." 

Stalker :  "  Theology  has  its  centre  in  the  Cross. 
Sometimes,  indeed,  it  has  been  'shy  of  it,  and  has 
deviated  from  it  in  wide  circles;  but  as  soon  as  it 
becomes  profound  and  humble  again,  it  always  re- 
turns. 

"  The  supreme  Christian  rite  brings  us  to  the 
Cross  and  the  moment  of  His  darkest  hour:  '  This 
is  My  blood  of  the  New  Testament  shed  for  many 
for  the  remission  of  sins.'  " 

R.  W.  Dale :  "  The  doctrine  of  the  Atonement 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  57 

is  so  interwoven  in  the  New  Testament  writings 
that  it  cannot  be  taken  out  without  pulling  the  whole 
fabric  to  pieces.  The  putting  away  of  sin  by  the 
sacrifice  of  Himself  is  without  dispute  the  heart 
of  the  Gospel  message  which  is  in  turn  the  heart 
of  the  New  Testament  record. 

"  The  statement  that  Christ  died  to  show  His 
love  to  mankind  is  to  me  equally  unintelligible.  If 
we  have  no  other  reason  for  His  death  than  to 
manifest  His  love  to  us,  we  have  no  explanation 
for  the  moral  act  of  Christ  in  submitting  to  those 
sufferings." 

It  is  indeed  gratifying  to  see  the  unanimity  of 
these  writers  as  to  the  central  phase  of  His 
Suffering;  however,  we  need  not  be  so  much 
concerned  about  the  theories  of  the  Cross,  yet  every 
man  who  has  been  a  mighty  force  in  God's  king- 
dom has  had  sound  and  abiding  convictions  as  to 
the  meaning  of  this  doctrine,  of  this  life.  No,  its 
meaning  is  not  seen  in  abstract  statements  about 
the  Lord's  death,  but  more  clearly — and  far  more 
important  to  us — in  what  it  has  revealed  concern- 
ing the  human  race,  making  it  plain  how  strug- 
gling and  sincere  souls  may  emerge  from  dark- 
ness into  the  clear  light  of  God's  grace;  how  we, 
who  have  already  known  Him,  may  come  more 
closely  to  Him  and  more  fully  show  His  life  and 
power.  The  present  crisis  in  the  world  demands 
for  us  to  see  what  there  is  in  the  Cross  that  may 
be  the  means  through  the   Spirit's   guidance   and 


58         THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

power  to  lead  us  to  live  the  Christ-life  as  we  seek 
to  manifest  God  to  the  chaotic  world,  and  win  men 
everywhere  to  His  obedience. 

5.    The  Oneness  of  the  Human  Race. 

The  more  we  know  of  God  and  how  He  has  loved 
u3  and  sought  to  bring  us  into  true  fellowship  with 
Him,  the  more  we  see  that  He  loves  all  men  alike. 
"  For  there  is  no  difference  or  respect  of  persons 
with  Him."  "  He  has  no  blessings  for  me  that 
He  does  not  have  for  the  Zulus  or  Hottentots  if 
they  are  ready  to  receive  them.  My  needs  are  the 
needs  of  all  men.  What  will  save  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  race  will  save  all  others.  We  are  all  one 
in  our  infinite  need  as  we  approach  the  Father,  who, 
through  His  boundless  love  and  grace,  made  pro- 
vision for  the  salvation  of  all.  He  has  provided 
alike  for  the  needs  of  all. 

Before  Christ  came  to  the  earth  and  made  known 
God  the  Father,  the  races  of  mankind  stood  aloof 
from  each  other.  They  selfishly  prided  themselves 
in  forcing  the  weak  to  be  slaves  of  the  strong. 
They  gloried  in  luxurious  living  and  lustful  deeds 
by  the  favoured  few,  to  the  oppression  and  debas- 
ing of  the  many.  The  nations  then  were  like  the 
Chinese  farmer  of  today,  who  forces  all  coming 
his  way  ever  to  walk  the  circuitous  path  around 
his  little  field  before  he  will  join  his  neighbour  in 
making  the  road  straight.  No,  he  makes  no  con- 
cessions for  the  good  of  the  many,  he  lives  purely 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  59 

for  himself  in  his  cramped  and  narrow  views  of 
life.  All  the  world  was  that  way  until  we  saw  the 
Son  unselfishly  giving  His  life  on  the  Cross  for 
our  sins,  and  not  for  ours  only,  but  for  the  whole 
world.  The  special  privileges  that  made  the  Jew 
proud  and  haughty,  the  wisdom  of  the  Greeks  that 
made  God's  plan  for  man's  redemption  seem  fool- 
ishness, and  the  most  excellent  code  of  the  Romans, 
who  thought  their  laws  would  forever  rule  the  na- 
tions, these  all  have  been  properly  related  and  given 
new  life — perfect  life — by  Him  who  made  it  pos- 
sible for  all  men  alike  to  worship  the  Father,  and 
in  Whom  is  hid  all  the  treasures  of  wisdom  and 
knowledge,  and  who  said  in  loving  God  perfectly 
and  man  as  ourselves,  we  have  fulfilled  the  perfect 
law  of  life. 

In  the  right  appreciation  of  the  Oneness  of  the 
human  race  there  is  the  power  and  basis  to  heal 
all  of  the  differences  of  the  nations  and  bring  about 
the  Golden  Age  of  prophecy — "  On  earth  peace, 
and  good  will  towards  men."  All  the  complex 
problems  of  labour  and  capital,  caste  and  race  dis- 
tinctions, can  be  solved  and  properly  adjusted  only 
as  we  follow  the  Man  Christ  Jesus  in  His  life  of 
Sacrifice.  He  will  then  see  that  we  are  bound  to- 
gether as  one  great  family  of  nations.  We  cannot 
suffer  alone,  neither  can  our  brothers  across  the 
seas  suffer  without  affecting  us.  We  truly  rise  or 
fall  together.  The  tides  of  the  human  family  ebb 
and  flow,  but  we  rise  through  God's  grace  that 


60  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

we  may  help  those  in  need,  and  bring  about  our 
Father's  will  on  earth  in  the  hearts  of  all  men. 
Jesus  teaches  in  the  parable  of  the  good  Samaritan 
that  your  most  despised  enemy  is  your  neighbour 
if  he  needs  your  help.  Neighbours  are  not  de- 
termined by  distances,  but  by  needs  (Lu.  10.29-37). 
"  There  is  neither  Jew  nor  Greek,  there  is  neither 
bond  nor  free,  there  is  neither  male  nor  female : 
for  ye  are  all  one  in  Christ  Jesus"  (Gal.  3.28). 
"  One  God  and  Father  of  all,  who  is  above  all,  and 
through  all,  and  in  you  all  "  (Eph.  4.6).  "  Ye  who 
were  sometimes  far  off  are  made  nigh  by  the  blood 
of  Christ.  For  He  is  our  peace,  who  hath  made 
both  one,  and  hath  broken  down  the  middle  wall 
of  partition  ...  by  the  Cross"  (Eph.  2. 13-16). 
Although  these  words  were  spoken  primarily  to  the 
early  Christians,  yet  the  principles  announced  to 
them  certainly  reveal  to  us  the  unity  of  all  who 
are  in  Christ  our  Lord.  These  principles  show 
that  all  men  in  their  relation  to  the  Father  are  one, 
and  in  Christianity  alone  we  may  truly  have  re- 
stored the  oneness  of  the  races  throughout  the 
whole  earth.  The  Cross  reveals  the  fact  and  the 
way  to  make  it  real  and  realized. 

6.  Disciple  ship  Means  Union  with  Christ  to  Save 
all  Mankind. 

Though  the  climax  of  Christ's  Sacrifice  was  the 
Cross,  yet  His  whole  life  was  a  Sacrifice  if  the 
Great  Sacrifice  means  suffering   for  us.     Doubt- 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  61 

less  His  pure  life  as  it  came  in  touch  with  the 
profligate  world  suffered  all  the  way  to  the  Cross. 
He  had  an  intense  conflict  from  the  time  He  dwelt 
at  Nazareth  until  His  life  passed  into  the  Father's 
hands  from  the  Cross.  He  fought  the  great  bat- 
tle involving  the  methods  of  His  kingship  first  in 
the  wilderness,  it  was  fought  again  when  the  temp- 
ter appeared  to  Him  through  His  zealous  disciple, 
Peter,  and  finally  and  forever  won  in  the  struggle 
of  the  ages  in  the  battles  that  gathered  close  to 
and  on  Calvary.  We  see  on  the  Cross  manifested 
that  which  had  been  going  on  and  intensifying 
from  the  beginning  of  His  earthly  career  until  the 
agony  of  agonies  was  realized  when  He  said :  **  My 
God,  my  God,  why  hast  Thou  forsaken  Me?  "  He, 
being  our  representative,  the  whole  human  family 
suffered  in  Him.  However,  it  concerns  us  most 
to  know  that  all  who  become  His  disciples  must 
join  Him  in  the  Sacrificial  work  to  redeem  the 
world — not  that  our  sacrifice  is  demanded ;  but  union 
with  the  Master  means  we  partake  of  Him,  we  join 
Him  in  the  holy  calling,  we  live  to  perpetuate  the 
kingdom  He  established,  we  live  unto  God  and  not 
unto  ourselves;  and  all  who  thus  live  in  a  world 
of  sin  and  wickedness  will  necessarily  enter  into 
His  fellowship  of  suffering.  Our  relation  to  the 
world,  the  mission  of  our  calling,  and  our  Divine 
Hfe  all  move  us  in  the  way  our  Master  went.  Not 
only  is  this  true,  but  as  we  do  these  things  do 
we  show  forth  our  sonship,  as  well  as  kingship,  and 


62         THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

be  of  the  greatest  force  in  bringing  the  world  to 
Him. 

"  The  Son  of  God  goes  forth  to  war 
A  kingly  crown  to  gain ; 
His  blood-red  banner  streams  afar 
Who  follows  in  His  train? 
Who  best  can  drink  his  cup  of  woe. 
Triumphant  over  pain, 
Who  patiently  bears  his  cross  below 
He  follows  in  His  train." 

Jesus  said  to  His  disciples  soon  after  they  com- 
menced to  follow  Him,  and  before  they  were  pre- 
pared to  understand  its  significance:  "If  any  man 
will  come  after  Me,  let  him  deny  himself,  and  take 
up  his  cross  and  follow  Me.  For  whosoever  will 
save  his  life,  shall  lose  it;  and  whosoever  will  lose 
his  life  for  My  sake,  shall  find  it''  (Matt.  16.24!; 
Mark  8.34f.).  The  rule  of  their  life  was  to  live 
like  their  Master,  giving  their  lives  for  others.  He 
that  would  be  greatest  must  be  servant  of  all  (Lu.^ 
9.23f.  and  14.27). 

We  are  called  to  the  fellowship  of  His  suffering. 
"If  we  suffer,  we  shall  reign"  (2  Tim.  2.12). 
The  Captain  of  our  salvation  was  made  perfect 
through  suffering  (Heb.  2.10).  He  has  left  us  an 
example  that  we  should  follow  His  steps  (i  Pet. 
2.21).  This  is  the  purpose  of  our  calling — "  we  are 
appointed  thereunto"   (i  Thes.  3.3;   i  Cor.  4.9). 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  63 

The  great  aim  of  Paul's  life  was  to  enter  into  the 
fellowship  of  His  sufferings,  and  be  made  conform- 
able unto  His  death  (Phil.  3.10).  We  suffer  with 
Him  that  we  may  be  also  glorified  together  (Rom. 
8.17).  We  are  privileged  to  suffer  for  Him — *'  It 
is  given  in  behalf  of  Christ,  not  only  to  believe  in 
Him,  but  also  to  suffer  for  His  sake"  (Phil.  1.29). 
We  suffer  in  order  that  the  life  of  Jesus  might  be 
made  manifest  in  our  body  (2  Cor.  4.iof.).  The 
sufferings  of  Christ  in  us  are  a  source  of  consola- 
tion to  others — "  As  the  sufferings  of  Christ  abound 
in  us,  so  our  consolation  aboundeth  by  Christ "  (2 
Cor.  i.4f.).  We  should  rejoice  in  our  fiery  trials, 
for  then  we  are  partakers  of  Christ's  sufferings  (i 
Pet.  4.i2f.).  Our  sufferings  fill  up  that  which  is 
behind  of  the  afflictions  of  Christ  for  His  church's 
sake  (Col.  1.24).  As  Christ  suffered  in  the  flesh, 
we  should  arm  ourselves  with  the  same  mind  (i 
Pet.  4.1).  From  these  and  many  similar  expres- 
sions in  God's  Word  it  is  evident  that  discipleship 
means  entering  into  the  Cross  life,  and  be  like  our 
Master  in  offering  up  our  bodies  completely  upon 
the  altar  of  service.  The  fellowship  of  the  Master 
in  this  life,  the  great  blessings  that  will  come  to 
others  through  us  as  His  representatives,  the  glori- 
ous life  that  awaits  all  who  will  truly  enter  into  His 
holy  callings  urge  us  to  make  our  lives  one  with 
Christ  in  the  Cross  experience. 

Before  we  can  become  children  of  the  Father  in 
heaven,  we  must  submit  our  wills  to  Him.     We 


64  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

ought  in  making  the  submission  do  so  just  as  our 
Lord  did  in  making  the  Sacrifice.  One  of  the  spe- 
cial features  of  the  Suffering,  which  pleased  the 
Father  most,  was  that  Jesus  submitted  fully  to  the 
Father's  will — the  Father's  will  became  His  in  the 
work  He  came  to  do.  By  His  offering  Himself 
fully,  He  did  the  Father's  will,  and  made  the  Sacri- 
fice, which  was  acceptable  and  well  pleasing  to  the 
Father.  This  is  indeed  an  important  feature  of  the 
Cross  which  is  too  little  emphasized  in  discipleship. 

Godet  says :  "  The  element  of  reparation  in  the 
death  of  the  Cross  did  not  consist  in  the  unspeak- 
able sufferings  which  accompanied  it.  That  lay  in 
the  silent  and  absolute  submission  with  which  they 
were  endured.  It  is  not  sufferings  merely  under- 
gone that  reconciles :  it  is  suffering  accepted,  recog- 
nized as  that.  The  child  which  revolts  against  pun- 
ishment has  made  no  reparation  at  all.  Jesus'  sub- 
mission without  resistance  or  murmur  was  the  mani- 
festation of  that  interior  judgment  which  He  had 
justly  pronounced  before  God  upon  the  sin  of 
humanity." 

Willis  J.  Beecher  in  speaking  about  the  sacri- 
fices of  the  Old  Testament,  which  were  perfected  in 
Christ,  says :  ''  It  is  impossible  not  to  find  in  the 
burnt  offering  an  emblem  of  self-surrender,  ac- 
cepted from  the  skies  as  the  smoke  mounts  heaven- 
ward." 

He  who  would  do  the  Father's  will — be  His  dis- 
ciple^ — must  enter  His  service  by  the  same  submis- 


PRACTICAL  MEANING  65 

sion  that  the  Son  did  in  the  Cross.  Union  with 
Christ  presupposes  entire  submission  to  the  Father's 
will.  This  is  absolutely  necessary  to  all  true  dis- 
cipleship  that  is  worth  much  in  bringing  this  world 
to  the  knowledge  of  His  grace.  Godet  has  so 
forcibly  expressed  this  fact  that  I  quote  from  him 
again :  "  He  who  aspires  to  salvation  must  by  faith 
associate  himself  in  that  travail  of  soul  accomplished 
in  the  heart  of  Christ  when  He  consented  to  be 
'  made  sin  for  us.'  He  must  look  on  sin  with  the 
same  sense  of  reparation,  unite  himself  with  the  sor- 
rowing confession  of  Jesus, — with  His  humble  ap- 
peal to  the  Divine  mercy  when  before  His  Father 
He  judged  sin  as  God  judged  it,  and  pronounced 
His  sentence  of  death  as  God  Himself  pro- 
nounced it." 

R.  W.  Dale :  "  While  Atonement  remains  forever 
alone  in  its  unique  awful  grandeur,  it  involves  a 
similar  moral  act  on  the  part  of  all  who  have  *  ac- 
cess '  to  God  through  Him." 

If  the  Christian  world  could  fully  realize,  and 
abide  by  the  consequences  of  the  fact  that  disciple- 
ship  means  union  with  Christ  in  making  the  Sacri- 
fice for  the  world's  redemption,  then  our  dogmas 
and  abstract  doctrines  would  take  beautiful  form 
and  be  resplendent  with  life.  We  would  know  no 
fields  we  could  not  possess  nor  foes  we  could  not 
vanquish.  How  this  vital  truth  needs  **  to  con- 
strain "  us,  and  become  the  joyful  privilege  and 
ideal  of  our  lives  in  the  work  of  reconstruction. 


66  THE  CROSS:  ITS  DEFINITION 

In  the  preceding  consideration  we  have  noticed 
not  only  the  chief  features  of  the  Cross,  but  what 
it  has  accompHshed  for  us,  and  the  power  it  gives 
to  us  to  reproduce  the  Master's  life  in  His  service 
among  men.  These  practical  and  simple  phases  of 
the  subject  should  be  emphasized  daily  by  His  Chil- 
dren everywhere,  and  must  be  emphasized  in  all 
lands  if  these  lands  are  to  know  Him.  As  He  con- 
quered so  we  will  conquer.  His  life  must  be  ours. 
His  purpose  must  dominate  us,  His  infinite  power 
and  perfect  ideals  are  ours  to  subdue  all  enemies 
and  bring  about  His  peaceful  reign  in  all  lands. 
When  this  is  true  in  all  our  relationships  among 
men,  then  we  will  be  prepared  to  bring  the  prodigal 
world,  all  distressed  now,  to  the  Father  who  can 
bring  peace  to  all  by  the  Cross  of  Christ  adequately 
lived  in  the  lives  of  His  children  everywhere. 


PART  II 

THE  CROSS  AND  THE 
MISSIONARY,  A  SOLDIER 
FOR  WORLD   CONQUEST 


IT  MAKES  POSSIBLE  THE  HOME  BASIS 

THE  home  basis  and  the  work  on  the  far- 
flung  battle  lines  cannot  be  separated.  The 
effort  to  win  on  other  lands  had  its  begin- 
ning in  the  home  churches,  and  its  final  success 
will  ever  depend  largely  on  the  condition  of  the 
churches,  which,  through  the  guidance  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  sent  us  out.  The  church  work  at  the  home 
basis  is  the  home  problem  of  the  church's  work 
on  the  distant  fields.  When  the  home  churches  are 
strong  in  doctrine  and  true  to  the  Master's  life, 
then  the  problems  of  onward  growth  will  somewhat 
take  care  of  themselves.  There  is  grave  danger 
in  becoming  too  much  concerned  about  the  machin- 
ery of  organization  and  how  the  work  ought  to 
be  done,  and  thereby  fail  to  emphasize  the  strength 
of  all  organization  and  the  life  of  every  method, 
namely,  the  Cross  of  Christ. 

Our  relation  to  this  doctrine  will  always  vitally 
influence  the  home  basis.  When  the  churches  fail 
to  understand  the  Cross  and  all  it  involves,  they 
either  grow  indifferent  about  the  millions  without 
the  Gospel  or  fail  to  emphasize  the  core  of  the  Gos- 
pel in  its  saving  message  for  all  non-Christian  lands. 
Either  error  is  fatal  in  seeking  to  subjugate  the 

69 


70      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

world  to  the  Master.  As  soon  as  the  churches  get 
a  clear  conception  of  the  spirit  that  brought  Jesus 
to  the  earth  and  finally  to  the  Cross  for  them,  and 
not  for  them  alone,  but  for  the  entire  world,  they 
begin  to  feel  their  responsibility  to  give  the  "  glad 
tidings"  to  others  who  have  so  long  waited  in 
darkness.  "  Missions  depend  not  on  the  foresight 
of  the  church's  triumph,  but  insight  into  the  Gos- 
pel's purpose  and  power  " — The  Cross. 

Robt.  Speer :  "  Principal  Rainy  says :  *  The  meas- 
ure of  our  sense  of  missionary  duty  is  simply  the 
measure  of  our  personal  valuation  of  Christ.'  I  say 
His  Atonement  is  the  key  to  our  valuation  of  Christ, 
hence  the  key  to  our  valuation  of  missions.  The 
early  churches  had  no  missionary  societies — they 
were  too  missionary  to  need  them.  They  were  mis- 
sionary in  full.  Missions  were  the  genius  of  the 
early  churches."  As  our  home  churches  know  the 
full  meaning  of  the  Cross,  they  will  become  fully 
missionary.  They  feel  as  the  poet  did  when  he 
wrote : 

"  When  I  survey  the  wondrous  Cross 
On  which  the  Prince  of  glory  died, 
My  richest  gain  I  count  but  loss 
And  pour  contempt  on  all  my  pride. 

"  Were  the  whole  realm  of  nature  mine 
That  were  an  offering  far  too  small; 
Love  so  amazing,  so  Divine, 

Demands  my  soul,  my  life,  my  all.'* 


MAKES  POSSIBLE  THE  HOME  BASIS      71 

When  this  doctrine  is  properly  understood  and 
acted  out  in  the  churches,  we  will  not  lack  for  money 
and  men  to  press  the  battle  at  the  front.  This  is 
the  supreme  need  of  the  hour  for  the  world  con- 
flict. 

Dr.  Thomas  S.  Barbour  says  concerning  the 
Cross :  "  In  Christian  missions  Dr.  Mabie  holds 
that  the  Atonement  of  Christ  finds  its  full  inter- 
pretation and  expression.  They  represent  the  great 
outflowing  of  God's  love  to  all  the  world,  the  in- 
finite potency  of  the  grace  of  Christ.  From  the 
Cross  this  Divine  enterprise  derives  its  motive  and 
aim.  Not  in  philanthropic  impulse,  however  noble, 
not  in  obedience  to  an  external  command  of  Christ, 
but  in  fellowship  with  the  experience  of  Christ  upon 
the  Cross — an  experience  that  must  be  shared  by 
all  who  are  united  with  Him — are  found  the  char- 
ter and  power  of  Missions." 

Not  only  is  the  foreign  work  made  possible 
through  the  influence  of  the  Cross  on  the  home 
churches;  but  even  the  home  church's  existence,  as 
a  virile  force  in  Christianity — as  a  power  in  all 
that  truly  makes  for  the  coming  of  His  kingdom 
throughout  the  earth — is  dependent  upon  entering 
into  the  spirit  of  the  Cross,  seeing  that  the  main 
source  of  her  power  is  to  see  the  Cross  of  Christ 
in  its  true  relationship  to  her  own  life  and  out- 
going activities.  This  is  incomparably  more  im- 
portant than  any  formal  expression  of  doctrine. 
Important  as  the  Lord's  supper  and  baptism  are — 


72      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

and  should  ever  be  preserved  in  the  way  and  for 
the  purpose  for  which  they  were  instituted  by  the 
Master — yet  these  ordinances  have  their  reality  and 
use  only  as  they  bring  to  mind  the  Great  Sacri- 
fice. Without  the  Cross  understood  and  its  pro- 
found experience  recalled,  these  sacred  forms  would 
be  meaningless,  and  their  observance  might  become 
an  abomination  in  God's  sight.  The  denomina- 
tion— the  church — ^that  fails  to  emphasize  the  real- 
ities, which  these  ordinances  solemnly  and  sublimely 
bring  to  remembrance,  shall  grow  weak  and  life- 
less in  a  world  where  reality  is  the  final  test.  Socie- 
ties and  bodies  for  mutual  pleasure  and  culture  may 
continue  to  exist  as  long  as  they  perform  their  func- 
tions for  a  people  who  only  love  their  own  com- 
fort and  welfare;  but  when  the  great  battle  of  the 
human  family  must  be  fought,  putting  down  wick- 
edness in  high  places,  marching  against  the  foes  of 
all  righteousness  and  planting  the  eternal  truths  of 
God  in  all  lands,  nothing  will  enable  our  churches 
to  perform  this  task  but  the  power  and  Divine  cour- 
age that  come  alone  from  the  Cross  of  Christ.  We 
can  never  have  sufBcient  home  basis  to  enable  our 
forces  to  be  victorious  in  all  lands  until  we 
emphasize  rightly  in  the  home  churches  the  crucified 
life. 

Jehovah  prepared  His  chosen  people  for  their 
work  by  suffering.  Israel  was  purified  in  the  fur- 
nace of  affliction.  Sometimes  the  whole  nation  was 
spoken  of  as  the  suffering  servant,  personified  as 


MAKES  rOSSIBLE  THE  HOME  BASIS      73 

the  afflicted  One.  Although  these  references  had 
their  truest  and  fullest  and  perfect  fulfilment  in 
Christ,  yet  to  the  extent  of  Israel  entering  into  these, 
she  fulfilled  her  mission,  received  the  true  spirit  of 
the  aims  and  nature  of  the  covenants,  promises,  etc. 
If  we  win  the  world  to  God,  we  must  do  it  by  the 
law  of  His  kingdom's  growth — losing  ourselves  in 
His  service — having  fellowship  with  His  sufferings. 
By  thus  doing  His  work  we  become  vessels  of 
power,  produce  the  light  that  can  meet  the  world's 
needs  in  turning  sinful  hearts  back  to  the 
Father. 

When  Andrew  Fuller  became  alarmed  about  the 
spiritual  lethargy  of  his  church,  he  preached  a  ser- 
mon on  the  duty  to  give  the  Gospel  to  the  world, 
and  as  he  broadened  their  intellectual  life  and  quick- 
ened their  zeal  and  stirred  their  purpose,  he  fol- 
lowed it  up  the  next  Sunday  by  a  sermon  on  the 
same  subject.  The  third  Sunday  he  discussed  the 
same  theme,  and  his  hearers  began  to  inquire: 
"  Then  if  the  Gospel  can  save  the  world,  can  it 
not  save  our  children  and  our  community  ?  "  From 
these  missionary  sermons  sprang  one  of  the  great- 
est revivals  in  the  history  of  his  large  city 
church. 

Arthur  T.  Pearson:  "The  more  the  disciples 
at  home  and  abroad  become  pervaded  with  the  spirit 
of  missions,  the  more  is  all  the  glory  of  the  Apos- 
tolic church  again  revived.  The  Arab  proverb  says : 
*  The  water  poured  on  the  roots  of  the  cocoanut 


74      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

tree  comes  back  to  us  in  the  sweetened  milk  of  the 
cocoanut  that  falls  from  the  top/  The  streams 
poured  into  the  arid  desert  fields  of  missions  return 
on  the  home  churches  in  heavenly  showers/* 


VI 


SENDS  THE  MISSIONARY  TO  THE  NON- 
CHRISTIAN  LANDS 

i4  S  with  Paul,  the  death  of  Christ  was  "  the  con- 
f^L  straining  force  that  pressed  him  onward  over 
land  and  sea,"  so  with  the  missionary  of  today. 
As  he  sees  how  God  loved  all  men  as  manifested  in 
the  Cross  of  Christ,  and  how  He  died  for  all,  and 
that  He  will  freely  save  all  who  come  to  Him,  the 
consecrated  heart  is  ready  to  go  anywhere  and  make 
any  sacrifice  His  Master  may  wish.  Other  reasons, 
doubtless,  cause  some  to  go  to  the  front.  Some 
are  moved  by  the  humane  motives  that  appeal  to 
the  Western  minds ;  some  wish  to  give  the  heathen 
our  Western  civilization  and  culture;  some  desire 
to  help  because  of  the  social  conditions  of  most 
non-Christian  lands ;  some  are  moved  by  the  Lord's 
farewell  command  "to  go";  but  if  the  Cross  in 
its  driving  force  in  the  heart  of  the  consecrated 
life  and  its  power  to  meet  the  needs  of  all  men 
were  taken  out  of  our  Christianity,  but  few  would 
go,  and  still  fewer  would  "  be  spent "  for  those 
in  the  lands  far  away.  I  am  aware  of  an  altru- 
istic and  philanthropic  spirit  in  a  number  of  social 

75 


76      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

movements  that  is  sending  some  to  lift  suffering 
humanity,  and  give  to  the  so-called  lower  scales  of 
civilization  the  best  there  is  in  Western  culture  and 
civilization.  This  spirit  sends  helpers  to  other 
lands;  but  I  am  glad  to  think  that  many  of  the 
great  leaders  in  our  social  movements  are  empha- 
sizing the  Cross  in  its  true  relations  to  all  helpful 
movements.  We  need  only  to  place  first  emphasis 
upon  the  Cross,  and  then  use  every  method  possi- 
ble to  reach  the  present  needs  of  the  human  family. 
To  fail  to  put  first  emphasis  upon  the  Cross  all 
these  movements  fail  us  in  the  trying  places  of 
the  kingdom  as  a  missionary  propaganda.  The 
tender  shoots  and  leaves  that  give  beauty  to  the 
tree,  and  to  its  permanent  growth  and  symmetry, 
will  continue  to  do  so  only  as  long  as  the  centre 
is  healthy  and  strong;  so  it  is  with  all  movements 
of  the  class  mentioned. 

Judson  said  to  some  prospective  ministerial  stu- 
dents :  "  Let  not  your  object  be  so  much  as  '  to 
do  your  duty '  or  *  save  souls,'  though  these  should 
have  a  place  in  your  motives;  but  the  main  thing 
is  to  please  your  Lord.  Lay  your  life  in  line  with 
the  purpose  of  God  in  the  Incarnation."  Men  are 
willing  to  count  not  their  lives  dear  unto  them- 
selves as  they  see  what  it  cost  to  redeem  them. 
We  who  have  received  so  much  from  Him  must 
show  our  appreciation  by  giving  all  to  His  service. 
He,  who  for  the  Father's  glory  and  our  redemp- 
tion, became  obedient  unto  death,  even  the  death 


THE  FOREIGN  FIELDS  77 

of  the  Cross,  has  a  perfect  right  to  demand  all  from 
us  in  full  surrender  of  life  to  go  anywhere  or  do 
anything  at  His  bidding.  Because  of  what  we  have 
so  graciously  received,  we  owe  a  debt  to  all  men 
to  make  our  purchased  possession  theirs,  too.  All 
the  motives,  which  have  done  most  to  send  the  mes- 
sengers of  the  Cross  to  the  peoples  who  know 
not  our  Saviour,  have  had  and  will  ever  need 
to  have  their  source  and  receive  their  strength  in 
the  Cross. 

The  society  that  has  far  more  missionaries  than 
any  other  in  China  is  the  China  Inland  Mission, 
founded  by  J.  Hudson  Taylor.  The  object  of  this 
mission  is  to  occupy  the  unoccupied  fields  in  China's 
vast  untouched  sections  teeming  with  the  multitudes 
without  the  knowledge  of  the  World's  Redeemer. 
This  principle  necessarily  forces  her  messengers  into 
the  most  dangerous  places.  They  are  pioneers  pene- 
trating the  unexplored  sections  and  planting  the 
banner  of  the  Cross  where  Christ  has  not  been  so 
much  as  named  before.  During  the  Boxer  upris- 
ing the  men  and  women  and  children  suffered  more 
than  probably  all  others.  They  were  so  far  in  the 
interior  that  when  the  trouble  broke  out  they  could 
not  find  safe  exit  to  the  coast.  They  had  to  meet 
the  fury  of  the  Boxers  at  their  stations,  and  many, 
who  sought  to  reach  the  coast,  were  either  over- 
taken or  intercepted.  Literally  hundreds  of  these 
faithful  missionaries  with  the  native  converts  (many 
of  these  w^ere  as  true  to  Christ  as  those  who  had 


78      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

taught  them  to  serve  Him)  suffered  martyrdom  in 
the  most  horrible  way.  They  were  tortured  by  slow 
and  most  painful  methods,  cut  to  pieces,  beheaded 
(the  worst  thing  possible  in  the  eyes  of  the  heathen, 
— to  be  forced  to  dwell  in  the  under  world  forever 
headless),  famished  in  the  fields,  yet  dying  gladly 
for  His  sake,  who  sought  not  His  own,  but  us,  that 
we  might  be  the  Father's  own  people  forever.  The 
China  Inland  Mission  has  a  glorious  history  that 
brings  vividly  to  mind  the  records  of  the  Apostles 
in  their  consecration  and  service. 

The  call  that  comes  to  the  Christian  youth  and 
manhood  of  the  land  from  this  Mission  is  to  come 
and  service  to  bring  about  His  world-reign.  From 
a  material  standpoint  but  little  is  offered.  No  ap- 
peal is  made  to  the  churches  for  money  to  support 
those  who  go  forth.  They  are  not  guaranteed  any 
stipulated  salary  by  any  Board.  Each  missionary 
will  receive  his  pro  rata  of  the  funds  voluntarily 
given  up  to  a  certain  amount,  which  is  rather  small 
compared  with  what  the  average  mission  gives.  The 
missionary  puts  himself  wholly  in  the  Lord's  hands, 
and  he  is  expected  to  look  not  to  men,  but  to  the 
Lord  for  help  and  safety.  The  call  is  distinctly  one 
that  appeals  to  the  heroic  faith  of  God's  children. 
It  magnifies  the  Lord's  power  and  personal  touch 
with  those  who  go  at  His  bidding  and  those  who 
stay  at  home  and  make  it  possible  for  others  to 
go — the  Lord  of  the  harvest  is  directly  and  per- 
one  and  all  who  want  to  enter  fully  into  His  life 


THE  FOREIGN  FIELDS  79 

sonally  moving  along  the  line  from  one  end  to  the 
other. 

We  might  wonder  if  a  mission  conducted  as  this 
one  would  have  sufficient  men  and  money  to  do  a 
great  work.  The  Mission  has  been  in  existence  long 
enough  to  prove  her  methods.  She  has  been  mar- 
vellously blessed  from  the  very  first,  growing  stead- 
ily from  the  day  she  embarked  on  her  era  of  faith 
and  sacrifice  for  His  glory  alone.  Some  forty  years 
of  wonderful  blessings  have  marked  her  history. 
In  1910  it  was  my  privilege  to  spend  over  a  month 
at  her  headquarters  in  London,  England.  I  took 
this  occasion  to  make  many  inquiries  about  her  his- 
tory and  present  outlook.  At  the  Mission  Home 
I  came  in  touch  with  many  of  the  most  active  mem- 
bers. They  said  that  they  had  never  refused  an 
applicant  for  lack  of  funds.  They  trusted  the  Mas- 
ter implicitly  for  men  and  money  to  carry  on  His 
work,  and  they  had  never  been  disappointed.  They 
often  could  not  see  how  tomorrow's  needs  were 
going  to  be  met,  but  none  had  suffered  for  "  daily 
needs."  Their  number  had  constantly  increased 
from  year  to  year,  and  the  money  to  send  these 
workers  out  and  equip  them  on  the  field  for  service 
had  been  supplied.  It  is  most  encouraging  to  see 
in  their  recent  Annual  that  this  Mission  now  num- 
bers about  a  thousand  foreign  helpers  scattered  over 
much  of  the  interior  of  China,  breaking  the  bread 
of  life  to  millions.  If  these  faithful  and  conse- 
crated servants  of  Him,  who  redeemed  them  with 


80      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

His  precious  blood,  were  not  willing  to  go  in  the 
spirit  and  for  the  purpose  of  our  Master's  Sacri- 
ficial work,  many  in  China  would  not  have  the 
bread,  that  cometh  down  from  heaven,  who  now 
have  it  and  to  spare. 

The  methods  of  this  Mission  may  not  be  the 
best  for  all  places  and  conditions.  The  Master, 
doubtless,  has  many  methods  He  will  use  at  dif- 
ferent places  and  at  different  times.  Even  J.  Hud- 
son Taylor  did  not  think  the  Lord's  work  was  con- 
fined to  his  own  mission.  Others  with  methods 
very  different  from  his  were,  nevertheless,  doing 
the  Lord's  work  in  His  own  way.  However,  the 
China  Inland  Mission  and  many  others  in  China 
and  elsewhere,  whose  missionaries  emphasize  thus 
the  Master's  direct  oversight  and  care,  and  who 
have  many  opportunities  to  follow  the  Saviour  in 
His  Cross  life,  show  to  all  Christendom  most  forci- 
bly that  the  rugged  heroic  sacrificial  life  does  not 
keep  men  and  women  from  the  trying  fields  of  serv- 
ice— rather  it  is  the  greatest  force  to  lead  them 
into  these  fields.  The  power  and  life  of  the  Cross 
is  the  one  factor  that  ''  thrusts  "  most  men  to  "  the 
fields  already  white  unto  the  harvest." 

We  found  that  one  of  the  prerequisites  to  Christ 
making  the  Cross  fully  and  all-pleasing  to  the 
Father  was  complete  surrender  of  His  will  to  the 
Father's.  **  I  came  not  to  do  My  will,  but  the  will 
of  Him  who  sent  Me."  Not  until  God's  children 
make  the  full  surrender  as  Jesus  did  in  the  Cross 


THE  FOREIGN  FIELDS  81 

are  they  fitted  to  go  as  His  representatives  in  the 
foreign  fields.  This  is  pre-eminently  necessary  be- 
fore they  can  be  sent  forth  in  the  power  and  wis- 
dom of  the  Holy  Spirit.  If  discipleship  meant  this 
to  every  child  of  God  as  it  should,  He  could  use 
us  more  effectively  to  bring  about  His  world-reign. 
It  is  this  voluntary  and  glad  surrender  of  all  to 
the  Father,  which  His  disciples  must  do,  before  this 
evil  world,  with  all  of  its  organized  wickedness, 
can  be  conquered  for  our  God. 

A  life  gladly  and  unreservedly  given  to  His  plans 
of  conquest  is  the  greatest  power  to  move  other 
hearts  to  enter  into  the  conflict.  His  children  have 
seen  the  concrete  example  of  some  one  giving  His 
life  even  unto  death,  and  they  have  been  inspired 
to  heroic  service.  Mrs.  Harriet  Newell  was  the 
first  missionary  from  America  who  followed  her 
Lord  unto  death  in  the  foreign  fields.  She  passed 
to  her  reward  from  the  Isle  of  France,  near  Cal- 
cutta, before  she  had  even  reached  her  field  of 
labour — India.  As  has  been  said,  in  one  short  year, 
she  was  a  happy  bride,  a  joyful  missionary,  a  hope- 
ful mother,  and  a  saint  in  heaven.  A  cry  went  up 
in  the  home  land  by  those  who  do  not  view  life  as 
Jesus  did :  **  Her  life  so  hopeful  and  promising  was 
a  failure !  "  No,  never !  It  is  now  reported  by 
those  who  can  see  the  after  results  of  this  life,  so 
short  and  seemingly  so  fruitless,  that  she  has  prob- 
ably turned  more  hearts  to  the  foreign  field  than 
any  other  American  woman.    David  Brainerd's  life, 


82      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

though  short  in  years,  yet  intense  in  devotion — ^he 
literally  poured  out  his  life  to  the  American  In- 
dians in  a  few  years — was  far  from  being  a  fail- 
ure. Never  has  one  life  done  so  much  on  this  con- 
tinent as  his  to  inspire  men  to  go  far  hence  to  the 
lands  without  the  Gospel.  Many  of  the  early  pio- 
neers owed  their  impulse  to  go  to  the  pagan  lands  to 
his  example.  It  is  the  Cross,  whether  in  the  Mas- 
ter or  in  those  in  whom  the  Master  is  formed,  that 
moves  the  missionary  to  leave  all  in  the  home  land 
and  follow  His  Lord  whithersoever  He  leadeth,  and 
give  his  life  evermore  to  hasten  His  heavenly  reign. 


VII 


IT  IS  THE  POWER  OF  THE  MISSIONARY'S 
MESSAGE. 

AS  soon  as  the  missionary  reaches  the  field  and 
sees  the  situation,  he  becomes  conscious  of 
great  need.  He  sees  the  whole  land  given  to 
idolatry,  false  religions,  organized  with  great  resis- 
tance, intrenched  long  in  the  hearts  of  the  people.  He 
finds  the  religious  beliefs  of  many  of  these  people 
dearer  to  them  than  anything  else  in  the  world.  They 
are  walking  in  the  ways  their  fathers  trod,  believe 
fully  that  this  is  the  way  which  the  loyal  sons  of  hon- 
oured parents  should  hold  sacred  and  preserve  for  all 
time  to  come.  He  soon  finds  he  is  in  need  of  some 
message  more  than  man  can  give,  more  powerful 
than  culture  or  civilization,  that  will  break  through 
superstition  and  ignorance  held  sincerely.  He  finds 
error  polished  and  made  attractive  to  the  masses. 
He  verily  and  truly  must  have  a  message  that  will 
not  only  appeal  to  the  people,  but  will  overcome 
all  the  opposition  of  error  and  superstition  that 
have  accumulated  with  the  years,  being  handed  down 
by  father  to  son  from  generation  to  generation. 
These  traditions  held  so  sincerely  and  pursued  with 

83 


84      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

the  highest  motive  of  their  beings  have  made  them 
v^hat  they  are;  and  until  they  see  something  bet- 
ter these  will  furnish  them  their  hope  and  aspira- 
tion. Unless  the  missionary  can  bring  them  a  mes- 
sage replete  with  power,  able  to  remove  ignorance 
and  furnish  the  highest  dynamic  truth,  his  work 
will  fail  him,  and  he  will  be  found  wanting  where 
human  needs  are  greatest.  He  must  have  a  mes- 
sage of  power  that  will  change  the  currents  of  hu- 
man life  and  thought  more  hoary  with  age  than 
anything  in  the  Western  world,  held  to  firmly  and 
sincerely  by  men  of  the  highest  type,  though  they 
are  children  (in  religious  matters)  struggling  in  the 
dark.  He  soon  realizes  that  mere  culture,  be  it  ever 
so  attractive;  mere  intellectual  effort,  be  it  ever  so 
scholarly;  mere  forms,  be  they  ever  so  beautiful, 
will  not  suffice  to  overcome  ancient  religions  thor- 
oughly organized.  He  needs  a  message  of  power — 
supernatural  power — some  force  both  illuminating 
and  life-giving,  not  only  begets  new  life,  but  as- 
sures its  growth  and  fruition. 

No  other  message  but  that  of  the  Sacrificial  death 
of  the  world's  Saviour  will  furnish  the  mission- 
ary with  the  necessary  working  power  to  make  his  ef- 
forts a  real  success  among  the  needy  peoples.  The 
old  civilizations  have  their  ideals  and  moral  forces 
— many  of  them  beautiful — and  have  rays  of  truth 
from  the  Giver  of  all  life  and  light;  but  the  power 
to  live  up  to  the  light  that  does  shine  in  every  man's 
conscience  is  painfully  wanting.    Many  of  the  Chi- 


THE  POWER  OF  HIS  MESSAGE        85 

nese  realize  that  they  have  no  power  in  their  moral 
precepts  and  ancient  teachings  to  lift  tfiem  out  of 
their  own  weaknesses.  Many  of  their  leaders,  who 
are  anxiously  trying  to  direct  the  people  into  bet- 
ter things,  are  conscious  of  the  sad  fact.  It  has 
ever  been  and  is  now  impossible  for  the  non-Chris- 
tian peoples  to  rise  from  the  crushing  load  that 
comes  from  their  ancestors  and  present  environ- 
ments. Only  the  moral  stimulus  that  comes  from 
the  power  of  the  Cross  will  enable  them  to  rise 
and  cast  off  these  burdens. 

Codet :  "  Christianity  deprived  of  this  becomes 
nothing  more  than  a  sword  with  its  edge  blunted, 
powerless  in  the  hands  of  both  the  missionary  who 
seeks  to  strike  down  other  religions,  and  that  of 
the  private  Christian  to  deal  a  mortal  blow  at  the 
heart  of  the  old  man — at  the  tyrannous  domina- 
tion of  self.  The  Christ  who  became  my  substi- 
tute on  the  Cross  has  alone  the  right  and  the  power 
to  be  substituted  in  my  heart  and  make  my  life 
effective  in  all  lands.*' 

A.  T.  Pierson,  speaking  of  a  hospital  in  Pales- 
tine, says:  "  Then  I  (he  is  quoting  the  exact  words 
of  a  missionary  there)  tell  them  about  Father 
David,  the  great  prophet,  and  then  about  Seidna 
Sa,  our  Lord  Jesus.  I  tell  them  *  You  think  this 
hospital  was  built  by  the  Order  of  St.  John  of 
Germany,'  and  I  say,  '  No,  it  was  built  by  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  from  heaven  ' ;  and  I  go  on  and  tell 
them  how  these  doctors  would  have  never  left  their 


86      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

homes,  but  for  the  love  of  Christ.  I  ask  them : 
'  Would  you  leave  your  home ;  Would  you  leave 
your  children;  Would  you  do  for  people  seven 
thousand  or  ten  thousand  miles  away  what  is  being 
done  for  you  without  a  motive  ?  '  And  I  say  to 
them :  '  The  motive  is  the  love  of  Christ.'  Now,  if 
the  love  of  Christ  constrains  us  to  come  to  you 
and  give  ourselves  for  you,  then  you  owe  it  all  to 
Christ;  and  then  you  will  see  tears  trickle  down 
their  hardened  faces,  and  you  will  see  those  forms 
bowed  with  emotion  as  they  hear  the  old,  old  story 
of  the  Cross." 

It  has  been  said :  "  God  was  in  Christ  reconcil- 
ing the  world  unto  Himself  and  has  committed  this 
word  of  reconciliation  unto  us.  The  connection 
of  these  statements,  obviously  one  follows  from 
the  other.  The  later  becomes  illusory  as  soon  as 
there  is  any  hesitation  in  regard  to  the  former. 
When  preaching  cannot  make  His  sacrificial  death 
the  main  message,  it  is  not  only  vain,  but  it  be- 
comes null  and  void.  "  There  is  only  one  feel- 
ing in  the  heart  to  which  the  preaching  of  Christ 
may  appeal  with  the  assurance  that  finds  a  response. 
The  morality  to  inspire  admiration,  to  solve  prob- 
lems of  Christianity  one  may  appreciate,  but  the 
enduring  bonds  that  bind  human  hearts  to  Christ 
are  not  of  these.  It  is  only  by  the  consciousness 
of  sin  and  the  remedy  of  the  Cross  that  compels 
sin-ladened  hearts  to  seek  the  world's  Saviour." 
This  is  pre-eminently  true  in  non-Christian  lands. 


THE  POWER  OF  HIS  MESSAGE        87 

The  sin-troubled  and  earnest  seeker  after  holi- 
ness and  purity  rather  expects  the  sin-bearer  to 
come,  not  from  within,  but  from  without.  Though 
Christianity  is  unique  in  having  the  God-man,  who 
bore  our  sins,  yet  we  find  in  the  non-Christian  lands 
men  who  seem  ready  to  appreciate  this  method  of 
redeeming  mankind.  The  missionary — as  he  tells 
the  anxious  listener  for  the  first  time  about  God 
sending  His  only  begotten  Son  to  die  for  our  sins, 
the  just  for  the  unjust,  and  thus  make  a  way  for 
our  salvation — often  hears  this  listener  say  after 
the  plan  is  fully  explained :  "  That  is  a  great  plan. 
How  can  this  be  possible  that  the  God  of  all  the 
earth  would  thus  seek  to  save  us?"  One  of  the 
great  national  festivals  in  China  is  Dragon  Boat 
Day.  The  streams  and  lakes  are  alive  with  the 
festive  crowds.  They  are  celebrating  a  great  hero 
who  years  ago  gave  his  life  in  seeking  to  rescue 
a  drowning  man.  The  principle  that  gave  his  life 
a  lasting  and  wholesome  influence  over  the  mil- 
lions of  China  was  that  of  giving  his  life  to  save 
others.  In  the  Greek  fable  we  see  Prometheus 
chained  to  a  rock  of  the  Caucasus  with  the  vulture 
tearing  at  the  vitals,  and  crying  with  pain  and  an- 
guish, he  says :  "  I  must  needs  endure  this  until 
one  of  the  gods,  perchance,  shall  bear  it  for  me." 
On  an  Easter  Sunday  years  ago  I  heard  one  of  the 
greatest  rabbis  of  the  United  States  speak.  In  his 
discourse  he  said :  "  It  is  the  Atonement  that  made 
Jesus  the  great  power  He  is  in  this  world."    Though 


88      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

he  did  not  accept  all  we  do  about  Jesus  of  Nazareth, 
yet  he  recognized  the  Cross  as  the  unique  and  all- 
powerful  feature  of  Christianity.  The  human  heart 
in  all  lands  needs  this  message ;  yea,  many  are  ready 
and  waiting  for  it,  and  the  power  that  comes  to 
those  who  accept  this  message  for  every  need  in 
the  moral  conflict  which  comes  to  them  as  well  as  us. 

The  missionary  must  believe  in  the  all-sufficiency 
of  the  Cross  to  meet  the  conditions  of  those  in 
grossest  darkness  before  he  will  have  the  boldness 
to  preach  to  the  lost  of  other  races  with  a  power 
and  pungency  necessary  to  make  his  message  all- 
powerful  to  regenerate  these  people.  Men  who  have 
counted  the  Cross  lightly  have  never  been  great 
missionaries.  They  do  not  believe  sufficiently  (if 
they  believe  at  all)  in  the  efficacy  of  the  Cross  to 
meet  the  appalling  needs  of  the  heathen.  They 
often  fail  to  see  these  appalling  needs  of  the  lands 
without  Christ.  Such  men  are  not  inclined  to  go 
to  the  distant  and  trying  places  of  the  earth;  and 
if  altruistic  and  other  motives  cause  them  to  go, 
they  find  themselves  without  the  message  that  will 
really  meet  the  needs  of  the  people. 

The  suffering  of  Jesus  unto  death  for  all  men 
without  respect  to  colour  or  race  distinction  is  a 
great  force  to  manifest  the  Father's  love  to  the 
world.  As  has  been  suggested,  the  worshippers  of 
the  gods  made  by  hands  never  believe  that  these 
gods  love  them.  They  worship  them  to  bring  health 
to  the  sick,  to  avert  sickness  to  the  well,  to  make 


THE  POWER  OF  HIS  MESSAGE         89 

them  prosperous  in  business,  lucky  in  their  deal- 
ings; and  in  many  cases  to  appease  the  wrath  of 
the  gods,  who  are  always  thought  to  be  angry  with 
them.  Ancestral  worship  and  hero  adoration  can 
hardly  be  connected  with  the  gods.  They  worship 
their  ancestors  to  prevent  the  departed  spirits  to 
return  with  death-dealing  chastisement  because  of 
their  neglect  by  the  living.  Practically  all  their 
worship  is  selfish.  They  have  no  conception  of 
a  God  who  is  potentially  reconciled  to  them,  and  is 
seeking  to  reconcile  them  to  Him.  The  revelation 
of  God's  love  comes  to  the  heathen  as  a  sweet,  con- 
soling message  from  the  Father's  presence.  The 
supreme  difficulty  comes  in  making  him  believe  that 
God  does  truly  love  and  care  for  him.  The  suf- 
fering of  Jesus,  freely  and  for  all  men,  and  in  so 
doing,  carrying  out  the  Father's  will,  is  the  great- 
est force  to  enable  us  to  show  them  that  God  does 
love  them.  Like  all  men,  they  first  say :  "  How 
can  this  be?  He  surely  cannot  love  men  of  the 
earth.  We  must  do  something  that  will  merit  His 
love.  It  is  not  possible  for  grace  to  be  so  free 
and  salvation  so  easily  obtained  by  us."  When 
they  are  once  convinced  that  the  Father  does  love 
them  and  gave  His  Son  for  their  salvation,  then 
they  forever  glory  in  "  His  unspeakable  gift."  It 
becomes  the  theme  of  their  songs  and  the  joy  of 
their  lives. 

Most  of  the  following  quotations  are  from  the 
Reports  of  the  Edinburgh  Conference :  ''  The  cli- 


90      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

max  of  the  Gospel  to  the  animistic  worshippers  is 
the  love  of  God — one  God — that  becomes  real 
through  Christ  in  His  death  and  resurrection." 

In  the  Message  from  the  Moslem  Fields  by  J.  H. 
Jessup,  of  Beirut,  we  have  these  words :  *'  But  an 
awakened  conscience  very  soon  seeks  for  atoning 
grace.  The  chief  point  in  which  such  an  inquir- 
ing mind  finds  these  old  faiths  (of  Islam)  empty 
and  unsatisfactory  are  that  they  produce  no  way 
of  redemption  from  the  power  and  penalty  of  sin. 
Kamil,  a  young  Moslem  convert,  received  his  first 
ray  of  hope  from  the  atoning  work  of  Christ,  and 
he  embraced  Christ  as  his  Saviour  with  all  his  heart. 
He  felt  he  was  a  sinner  and  needed  a  Saviour,  and 
he  spent  his  brief  life  in  preaching  *  the  unsearcha- 
ble riches  of  Christ/  " 

"  The  heathen  may  not  accept  the  supernatural, 
but  we  have  never  heard  one  complain  of  the  aton- 
ing work  of  Christ." 

Probably  the  greatest  living  student  on  present 
Christian  work  among  the  Mohammedans,  S.  M. 
Zwemer,  says :  "  The  element  in  the  Gospel  which 
possesses  the  greatest  power  of  appeal  to  the  Mo- 
hammedans is  the  union  between  the  mercy  and 
justice  of  God  as  shown  in  the  Cross  of  Christ. 
When  properly  presented,  this  doctrine  is  not  only 
absolutely  novel,  but  compelling  to  any  Mohamme- 
dan who  feels  a  sense  of  sin.  In  order  to  awaken 
a  sense  of  sin,  which,  I  believe,  is  the  first  essen- 
tial in  all  missionary  effort,  I  have  found  the  won- 


THE  POWER  OF  HIS  MESSAGE         91 

derful  ethical  standards  of  the  Sermon  on  the 
Mount  and  the  life  of  Christ  to  attract  and  con- 
vince. It  is  not  necessary  to  compare  Christ  and 
Mohammed.  If  we  present  Christ  as  He  is  in  the 
Gospel,  the  contrast  is  so  evident  that  the  com- 
parison is  made  by  Mohammed  himself." 

Arthur  H.  Smith,  of  China :  **  The  thought  of  an 
omnipotent  God  that  will  do  something  for  me,  and 
a  Divine  Saviour  who  cared  to  redeem  me — these 
melt  and  hold  many  Chinese  hearts.  His  suffer- 
ing, death,  and  sacrifice  for  us  make  a  strong  ap- 
peal even  to  the  heathen,  while  to  the  Christians 
the  loving,  suffering  Christ  is  the  power  that  grips 
them." 

Archdeacon  Moule,  of  China :  "  An  experience 
extending  over  a  half  a  century  has  not  either  in 
form  or  substance  altered  in  the  slightest  degree 
my  impression  that  the  most  important  and  vital 
element  in  the  Christian  Gospel  is  that  Jesus,  the 
Son  of  God,  died  for  our  sins.  The  centre  and 
core,  the  one  unique  and  supreme  element,  the  Cross, 
possesses  the  greatest  and  overmastering  appeal." 

M'Gillivray,  of  China :  "  My  experience  has  not 
altered  my  conviction,  sin,  salvation  through 
the  Cross  of  Christ,  the  resurrection  and  the  life, 
these  are  the  great  things  to  proclaim  to  the 
Chinese." 

W.  B.  Boggs,  of  India:  "I  believe  it  to  be  true 
of  India,  as  of  all  other  lands,  that  the  Gospel 
truth  that  really  possesses  the  greatest  power  of 


92      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

appeal  is  that  of  the  sin-bearing  Saviour,  the 
condemned  sinner's  substitute,  laying  down  His 
life  as  a  ransom  for  men  because  God  loves 
them." 

Nihal  Singh,  a  native  preacher  of  India :  "  The 
teaching  of  the  Lord  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount 
made  an  especial  appeal  to  me  when  I  was  a  Hindu. 
The  death  of  our  Lord  on  the  Cross  and  His  prayer, 
*  Father,  forgive  them ;  for  they  know  not  what 
they  do,'  also  made  an  especial  appeal  to  me.  It 
was  the  sense  of  sin  that  forced  me  to  accept  Christ 
as  my  Lord  and  Saviour.  Nothing  else  brought 
me  to  the  feet  of  the  Great  and  Good  Shepherd, 
but  the  sense  of  sin;  for  I  first  became  a  Brahmo 
and  then  a  Yogi,  but  found  no  remedy  for  my  sins 
to  be  wiped  out  but  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who 
shed  His  blood  for  me,  and  in  His  blood  I  found 
pardon  for  my  sins  and  reconciliation  with  my 
God." 

These  quotations  showing  what  is  the  greatest 
appeal  to  the  heathen  heart  could  be  extended  in- 
definitely, but  these  are  typical  and  will  sufifice  to 
reveal  the  fact  that  the  Cross  gives  power  to  the 
missionary's  message.  It  gives  power  and  effec- 
tiveness above  everything  else.  The  wise  mission- 
ary will  seek  to  know  all  about  the  heart  life  and 
viewpoint  of  the  men  he  goes  to  win  to  Christ. 
He  will  draw  near  to  them,  learn  their  peculiari- 
ties, think  their  thoughts,  see  life  as  they  do,  ap- 
proach them  in  the  wisest  and  best  way;  but  he 


THE  POWER  OF  HIS  MESSAGE        93 

should  never  forget  that  the  real  power  lies  in  the 
Cross,  and  if  his  work  is  to  tell  along  right  lines, 
he  will  ever  give  this  the  first  place  in  all  he 
does. 


yiii 

IT  ENABLES  THE  MISSIONARY  TO  ILLUS- 
TRATE MESSAGE  BY  LIFE 

THE  message  alone  will  not  be  effective ;  there 
must  be  life  which,  especially  in  the  begin- 
nings of  the  work,  will  count  more  than  the 
message.  The  message  must  always  be  accompanied 
with  appropriate  life,  or  it  will  count  but  little  with 
the  man  ever  ready  to  see  and  compare  the  mission- 
ary's daily  walks  with  his  teaching.  The  "  more  ex- 
cellent spirit  '*  in  the  stranger  from  afar,  though  his 
message  may  not  always  be  the  best  and  most  at- 
tractive, will  count  far  more  than  the  man  whose 
message  may  be  faultless,  yet  his  daily  relation 
to  the  natives  does  not  accord  with  his  message. 

The  missionary  is  often  weakest  in  his  life,  in 
his  relation  to  "  the  offensive  "  native.  The  highly 
cultured  and  sensitive  lady  missionary  just  fresh 
from  the  schools  and  churches  went  into  the  unkept 
and  filthy  homes  of  those  who  knew  nothing  else, 
returned  from  her  first  trip  and  knelt  down  in  her 
room  and  prayed  for  a  fresh  renewal  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  that  she  might  have  Divine  power — the  only 
kind  that   would   avail — to   sympathize   with   and 

94 


ILLUSTRATE  MESSAGE  BY  LIFE       95 

enter  into  the  life  of  the  natives  with  the  Master's 
love  and  desire  to  serve  all  classes  of  men,  and 
especially  the  lowly  and  outcasts.  She  saw  she  had 
new  problems  in  the  foreign  field  about  which  no 
books  had  fully  written,  and  the  returned  mission- 
ary could  not  adequately  describe.  Without  the 
power  to  readjust  herself,  her  message  would  be 
worse  than  fruitless,  it  would  be  positively  harm- 
ful. Oh,  yes,  she  had  loved  **  the  heathen  in  their 
darkness  bowing  down  to  stock  and  stone,"  but 
such  love  as  she  had  from  a  distance  would  not 
suffice  to  meet  the  intricate  problems  that  actually 
faced  her  as  she  received  a  faint  conception  of  their 
life  and  view  of  things.  She  must  have  a  double 
portion  of  the  Spirit's  power  to  meet  the  new  con- 
ditions. 

Sometime  ago,  as  one  of  our  oldest  mission- 
aries returned  from  a  personal  contact  with  a  Chi- 
nese, who  had  been  misappropriating  some  things 
of  the  compound,  said :  **  I  am  going  to  leave  China. 
I  am  losing  control  of  myself.  I  dp  not  have  pa- 
tience with  these  people.  My  life  cannot  be  effec- 
tive while  this  is  true."  Sadly  did  a  new  mission- 
ary confess  to  me,  after  he  had  lost  complete  con- 
trol of  himself,  that  the  climate  and  the  heathen 
life  brought  trials  to  him  he  never  had  to  encoun- 
ter in  his  native  land.  It  seems  that  all  the  forces 
of  evil  combine  upon  the  missionary's  life.  The 
message — the  Word — is  perfect.  This  cannot  be 
effectively  assailed,  but  the  missionary,  unto  whom 


96      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

alone  has  been  committed  the  word  of  reconcil- 
iation, is  not  perfect,  hence  the  most  successful  way 
to  make  void  the  Word  that  would  ever  bring  life 
and  hope,  if  properly  manifested,  is  to  attack  the 
life  of  the  missionary.  Every  missionary  is  tried 
over  and  over  again,  and  some  of  them  are  found 
wanting  as  they  come  in  daily  touch  with  the  na- 
tives in  all  the  trying  relationships  that  must  come 
to  all  active  missionaries  in  establishing  and  main- 
taining the  Lord's  work  in  the  foreign  fields.  They 
may  be  found  wanting  in  their  patient,  loving  for- 
bearance; it  may  be  in  not  properly  sympathizing 
with  the  native's  view  of  things,  lacking  courage 
and  perserverance  in  those  things  that  make  for 
permanency,  not  having  "love  without  dissimula- 
tion," failing  to  be  servant  to  all,  or  thinking  about 
the  things  which  are  "lovely,"  and  thus  act  the 
opposite.  It  makes  no  difference  whether  they  fail 
in  one  or  in  all  these  lines — if  they  do  fail — they 
will  bring  shame  upon  the  holy  Name  which  they 
have  come  to  set  forth  in  their  daily  walk  as  well 
as  message. 

Joseph  K.  Greene,  of  Constantinople,  who  has 
spent  over  fifty  years  among  the  Mohammedans  as 
a  most  successful  missionary,  said :  "  The  basis  of 
a  missionary's  appeal  will  depend  on  his  life  among 
the  Mohammedans.  It  is  indeed  a  wise  Provi- 
dence that  forces  the  missionary  to  spend  some  four 
years  in  studying  the  language  before  he  commences 
active  work.    The  natives  are  watching  the  mission^ 


ILLUSTRATE  MESSAGE  BY  LIFE       97 

ary  in  his  home,  in  the  market,  in  his  daily  touch 
with  them.  When  he  is  able  to  preach  and  tell 
them  about  the  love  of  God  and  the  sacrifice  made 
by  Christ  for  their  redemption,  the  effectiveness  of 
his  message  will  depend  on  the  impression  he  has 
already  made  on  them  by  his  daily  life  among  them. 
The  message  must  ever  be  true  to  the  core  of  the 
Gospel,  but  its  effectiveness  even  then  will  depend 
upon  the  missionary's  touch — personal  touch — with 
those  he  desires  to  save."  Seeing  these  things  are 
true,  behold  what  manner  of  men  we  ought  to  be. 
Dr.  Greene  pertinently  remarked  that  the  success 
of  saving  our  own  children  and  families  and  neigh- 
bours and  business  associates  even  in  this  country 
depends  upon  the  same  principle.  The  difference 
comes  here  and  in  the  foreign  fields  that  in  the 
foreign  lands  the  ability  to  set  forth  Christ  in  these 
lands  to  those  who  know  nothing  of  Him  is  de- 
pendent wholly  upon  Divine  life  and  power — the 
environments,  and  especially  the  attitude,  of  the 
natives  do  not  in  any  way  help. 

The  so-called  Christian  nations  have  dealt  with 
the  natives  of  all  countries  so  cruelly  and  shame- 
fully we  have  much  to  overcome  before  the  heathen 
can  see  in  us  the  spirit  of  Christ.  The  traders  and 
explorers  were  the  first  to  reach  these  lands,  and 
they  went  there  purely  for  gain.  *'  For  every  dol- 
lar they  put  in  these  countries  they  expected  one 
hundred  in  return."  They  were  not  careful  about 
the  methods  they  used  to  get  gain.     They  often 


98      THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

manifested  the  worst  spirit  in  their  relation  to  "  the 
degraded  and  worthless  natives "  as  they  called 
them.  They  did  not  think  of  these  people  as  their 
brothers,  who  had  been  deprived  of  the  light  and 
life  that  alone  made  us  better  than  they.  Whether 
the  native  was  met  in  his  country  or  visited  our 
own  land,  he  was  ever  treated  as  an  inferior  be- 
ing unworthy  of  kindness  or  honourable  considera- 
tion. In  the  Westerner's  contact  even  unto  this  day 
with  the  unfortunate  natives  of  any  country,  who 
cannot  resist  him,  he  shows  a  cruelty  and  brutality 
unthinkable  by  those  who  have  not  actually  seen 
him  in  his  dealings  with  these  natives.  We  need 
to  be  reminded  only  of  the  recent  atrocities  of  Peru, 
Congo  Free  States,  Soudan,  and  East  India  Islands 
to  know  that  the  spirit  of  the  average  Westerner 
in  his  touch  with  the  natives  is  cruel  beyond  de- 
scription. In  these  men's  relation  to  the  Orien- 
tals and  other  peoples  they  have  already  closed  the 
hearts  of  the  natives  against  the  missionary,  who 
is  at  first  classed  with  the  traders  and  explorers. 
Until  this  preconceived  idea  of  Christianity,  as  set 
forth  by  the  men  who  first  reached  their  shores, 
is  removed,  the  evangel  of  "  good  tidings  "  does 
not  bring  good  news.  His  message  may  sound 
beautiful  and  claim  to  do  wonders  for  those  who 
accept  it;  but  the  Oriental,  who  above  everything 
else  is  practical,  must  first  see  what  the  Gospel  has 
done  for  our  people.  They  have  theories  from 
their  sages  which  make  great  claims,  but  are  void 


ILLUSTRATE  MESSAGE  BY  LIFE        99 

of  the  power  to  produce  the  corresponding  life. 
The  missionary  first  of  all  must  be  a  living  ex- 
ample of  what  he  preaches.  If  he  fails  in  this  in 
his  relation  either  to  the  natives  or  his  fellow-mis- 
sionaries, his  message  will  be  shorn  of  that  strength 
necessary  to  change  the  prejudice  of  the  ages,  and 
turn  the  hearts  of  these  heathen  to  seek  sincerely 
the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus  our  Lord.  The  mission- 
ary spirit,  as  manifested  in  our  Lord's  atoning  work, 
can  supply  the  needs  of  the  so-called  Christian  coun- 
tries* touch  with  these  people.  This  spirit  of  our 
Master  alone  can  win  back  the  lost  confidence.  The 
missionary's  work  would  be  made  much  easier  if 
the  so-called  Christian  nations  dealt  with  these  peo- 
ples with  civic  and  social  righteousness,  then  the 
messenger  of  the  Cross  would  find  many  hearts 
already  prepared  for  the  saving  truth.  "  In  a  word, 
it  is  the  missionary  idea — the  missionary  faith  and 
the  missionary  policy — that  holds  the  key  of  the 
Empire  and  the  long,  last  reversion  of  the  wide 
world's  future." 

Our  Master  while  on  earth  did  most  by  giving 
us  a  life.  He  did  not  teach  so  much  by  precept 
as  by  example.  Most  of  His  miracles  were  per- 
formed to  manifest  His  love  and  desire  to  help 
those  whose  souls  were  languid  and  bodies  were 
hungry  and  tired — "  As  sheep  without  a  shepherd." 
He  wanted  to  relieve  the  **  one  who  had  been  bound 
lo  these  many  years."  comfort  the  widow  whose 
heart  was  torn  with  sorrow  over  the  death  of  her 


100    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

only  son,  still  the  tempest  in  order  to  quiet  faith- 
less hearts.  He  gave  us  but  little  if  any  abstract 
teaching.  He  went  about  doing  good,  healing  the 
multitudes,  casting  out  demons,  saying  the  king- 
dom of  God  is  at  hand.  He  did  not  need  to  teach 
much  about  the  kingdom  or  the  Father:  for  those 
who  had  seen  Him  had  seen  the  King  in  His  beauty, 
and  the  land  (the  kingdom)^  that  had  hitherto  been 
afar  off.  As  He  was  sent  to  manifest  the  Father 
by  His  life,  so  He  sends  us  forth  to  manifest  the 
Son  and  the  Father  in  our  life  among  those  who 
know  Him  not — the  life  which  we  must  live  (thank 
God),  we  live  by  the  faith  of  the  Son  of  God  who 
loved  us  and  gave  Himself  for  us.  This  is  the 
only  life  that  will  meet  the  situation,  the  only  thing 
tangible  to  the  heathen. 

The  missionary  must  enter  into  the  experience 
of  the  Master.  It  is  absolutely  necessary  that  he 
take  up  the  cross  daily  and  follow  Him.  Noth- 
ing short  of  this  will  make  his  message  effective 
in  that  which  really  counts  in  changing  heathen 
hearts  from  serving  idols  to  serving  the  true  and 
living  God.  The  same  life  that  Jesus  lived  must 
be  re-lived  in  China,  Japan,  India,  and  in  all  heathen 
lands  before  we  can  win  them  to  Jesus.  He,  who 
has  called  us  for  this  same  thing,  has  promised  to 
live  in  us  and  give  the  life  that  cometh  down  from 
above.  Education,  hospitals,  orphanages,  the  scat- 
tering of  literature,  colonization,  settlements,  etc., 
are  only  helpful  as  they  prepare  the  people  for  the 


ILLUSTRATE  MESSAGE  BY  LIFE      101 

one  who  brings  this  life,  or  sets  forth  this  life. 
These  adjuncts  to  mission  work  are  mighty  factors 
(which  have  been  too  much  neglected  in  the  past 
in  many  places)  when  properly  used  and  guarded 
in  making  ready  or  training  men  to  show  His  life. 
Helpful  and  absolutely  necessary  as  these  things 
are  in  their  proper  places,  yet  nothing  can  take  the 
place  of  the  personal  life  of  the  missionary,  who 
is  primarily  to  set  forth  the  unselfish  life  of  service, 
be  his  position  whatever  it  may;  and  he  who  fails 
at  this  vital  point — in  the  spirit  of  the  Cross — has 
lost  his  power,  and  for  him  to  stay  on  in  the  mis- 
sion field  will  help  but  little  in  Christianity's  con- 
quest, and  furthermore  his  life  may  be  a  real  hin- 
drance. Recently  an  old  missionary  of  wide  ex- 
perience said :  **  I  do  not  for  one  moment  believe 
according  to  the  ordinary  view,  that  Christianity 
fails  mostly  or  solely  because  we  lack  faith,  or  be- 
cause the  hearers  are  so  evil.  This  is  not  the  cor- 
rect view.  Nay,  it  often  fails  even  under  fair  con- 
ditions, because  we  so  mar  it  in  the  preaching,  and 
because  we  so  fail  to  demonstrate  its  spirit  and  its 
power  " — in  our  lives. 

H.  C.  Mabie :  "  As  Christ  had  gained  His  au- 
thority to  redeem  through  the  Cross,  so  the  dis- 
ciple would  gain  his  power  to  impress  the  salva- 
tion in  that  Cross  through  a  similar  surrendered 
life,  and  the  spiritual  quickening  through  thus  sur- 
rendering one's  life.  Hence  these  words:  *  He  that 
loveth  his  life  loseih  it;  and  he  that  hateth  his  life 


102    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

in  this  world  shall  keep  it  unto  life  eternal.  If  any 
man  serve  Me,  let  him  follow  Me,  and  where  I  am 
there  also  will  My  servant  be:  if  any  man  serve 
Me.  him  will  the  Father  honour.'  Sacrifice  is  not 
mere  punishment — that  is  asceticism.  In  the  life 
of  the  disciple  the  acknowledgment  of  the  moral 
claim  in  love,  whatever  its  cost  to  self-gratification, 
is  the  main  thing.  At  its  best,  one's  service  ever 
so  heroic  is  only  the  manifestation  of  an  elementary 
relation  to  Christ." 

I  would  not  seek  to  make  the  impression  that 
life  alone  is  of  itself  real  power.  No,  each  mis- 
sionary must  have  a  message  clear  in  his  own  heart, 
true  to  the  realities  of  the  Cross;  but  even  with  this 
the  message  without  the  life  (granting  that  such  is 
possible)  will  always  limp  and  be  powerless  in  the 
heathen  world  where  they  are  dependent  more  on 
what  they  see  than  what  they  hear.  Arthur  T. 
Pearson :  "  Between  lost  souls  and  the  Redeemer 
is  one  living  link,  the  witnessing  lives  and  lip9  of 
the  believers.  Here  then  is  the  glorious  work  of 
the  church:  being  one  with  Christ  by  faith,  love 
so  as  to  link  us  with  the  lost  as  a  bond  between 
Him  and  them.  When  self  is  laid  on  the  altar 
of  missions,  those  fires  of  God  come  down,  which, 
instead  of  consuming,  transfigure  with  celestial 
glory."  John  Elliot,  missionary  to  the  Indians  of 
New  England,  had  as  his  motto :  "  Prayer  and  pains 
through  faith  in  Christ  will  do  anything." 

"  Except  a  grain  of  wheat  fall  into  the  ground 


ILLUSTRATE  MESSAGE  BY  LIFE      103 

and  die,  it  abideth  by  itself  alone;  but  if  it  die,  it 
bringeth  forth  much  fruit."  This  is  the  law  of  all 
fruitful  lives  in  the  mission  field.  Other  peoples 
are  not  so  very  different  after  all  from  us.  They 
look  very  different  at  first,  but  as  soon  as  we  get 
beneath  the  surface  we  find  that  the  same  great 
principles  of  life  ebb  and  flow  in  their  hearts.  That 
which  really  moves  the  centres  of  human  life  in 
this  country  moves  them.  They  do  not  naturally 
hate  each  other  nor  other  nationalities.  There  is 
some  good  reason  for  them  to  suspect  every  man 
from  other  lands.  Although  they  have  good  reason 
for  not  receiving  the  stranger  graciously,  and  by 
nature  they  have  racial  antipathies,  yet  when  the 
missionary  without  outside  hindrances  can  show 
forth  the  life  and  teaching  of  our  Master  in  all 
sincerity  and  truth,  he  will  win  the  confidence  and 
esteem  and  love  of  the  peoples  of  any  land.  They 
will  at  first  keep  shy  of  him,  but  when  the  real 
man  is  revealed,  and  he  is  seen  to  be  one  who 
truly  loves  them  and  has  come  to  give  his  life  for 
their  good,  they  will  truly  appreciate  every  such 
life  and  respond  most  cordially  to  his  leading.  Fail- 
ures in  mission  fields  have  been  due  in  most  cases 
to  one  of  life.  The  heathen  may  be  a  knave  in 
some  things,  but  he  is  not  as  a  student  of  human 
nature.  He  knows  the  missionary  very  soon  after 
he  reaches  his  field.  No  pretence,  no  sham  will 
do  with  the  heathen.  You  will  be  in  his  eyes  largely 
what  you  are. 


104    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

My  predecessor  in  the  Hak-ka  field  of  South 
China  lived  only  three  years  among  the  Hak-kas. 
He  was  sick  much  of  this  time.  Went  to  China 
old  in  life,  had  great  difficulty  in  learning  the  lan- 
guage, and  never  learned  it  well,  but  he  knew  well 
the  language  o'f  all  hearts — love.  He  never  spared 
himself,  would  make  any  sacrifice  gladly  for  these 
people.  He  was  in  perils  oft  and  privations  many, 
tired  in  body  and  wearied  in  mind  as  he  sought  to 
give  them  a  knowledge  of  their  Saviour.  He  did 
'all  this  because  he  loved  them  so.  Even  unto  this 
day  many  remember  him  with  the  most  tender  con- 
sideration and  say,  "  He  gave  himself  for  us.'* 

As  far  as  man  can  see,  no  life  has  counted  more 
in  China  than  that  of  J.  Hudson  Taylor's.  He  spent 
a  long  and  fruitful  career  there.  In  a  trip  he  made 
throughout  China,  where  their  work  lies,  just  be- 
fore he  passed  into  His  presence,  it  was  said  that 
no  room  could  hold  the  Chinese  who  wanted  to  talk 
with  him.  Why  this  on  the  part  of  the  Chinese 
to  see  an  Englishman?  He  loved  them,  and  sought 
for  years  to  manifest  the  spirit  of  Christ  in  his  re- 
lation to  them.  He  was  patient,  forbearing,  had 
time  to  listen  to  the  things  of  common  interest  and 
concern  of  their  daily  life,  and  they  confided  in 
him  and  unfolded  their  heart  life.  The  Chinese 
who  did  not  know  him  might  revile  and  call  him 
bad  names,  but  he  bore  with  these,  and  in  time 
won  some  of  them  to  the  Saviour  whom  they  first 
scorned. 


ILLUSTRATE  MESSAGE  BY  LIFE      105 

The  spirit  of  his  life  among  them  is  best  illus- 
trated by  an  incident  that  occurred  in  one  of  his 
interior  journeys.  In  the  fast  approaching  dark- 
ness of  the  evening  he  came  to  a  river  that  must 
be  crossed  by  a  rowboat.  He  waved  for  the  only 
boat  to  come  to  take  him  across  the  stream.  He  was 
dressed  in  Chinese  clothes  and  in  the  darkness  could 
not  be  detected  from  an  ordinary  Chinese.  A 
wealthy  Chinese  saw  the  boat  coming,  and  when 
J.  Hudson  Taylor  started  to  enter  the  boat,  he 
struck  him  and  said :  "  He  had  called  this  boat 
for  himself.  He  wanted  the  boat  for  himself  and 
party,  and  no  one  else  could  have  the  boat  for  that 
trip."  The  boatman  immediately  spoke,  saying: 
"  I  know  Pastor  Taylor.  He  called  the  boat,  and 
I  am  going  to  take  him  across  first,  and  then  I  will 
return  for  you.  You  must  stand  aside  for  Pastor 
Taylor."  The  wealthy  Chinese  angrily  stood  aside, 
and  quickly,  when  he  learned  that  this  man  was 
a  foreigner.  He  felt  humiliated  and  greatly  alarmed 
because  he  had  struck  the  dreaded  foreigner.  J. 
Hudson  Taylor  quietly  entered  the  boat  and  took 
his  seat,  then  he  politely  invited  the  wealthy  Chi- 
nese to  go  across  the  stream  in  his  boat,  and  at 
no  time  rebuked  the  Chinese  for  his  "  naughty  " 
spirit.  This  Chinese  realized  that  he  had  met  a 
man  with  a  more  noble  spirit  than  they  possessed. 
He  was  not  only  J.  Hudson  Taylor's  friend  ever 
afterwards,  but  he  was  ready  to  hear  about  the 
Saviour  who  breathed  on  His  disciples  the  Spirit 


106    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

whose  fruit  is  love,  joy,  peace,  long  suffering,  gen- 
tleness, goodness,  faith,  meekness,  self-control. 
Such  a  spirit  as  Pastor  Taylor  manifested  will  al- 
ways give  Christianity  a  fair  hearing  and  turn  sin- 
ful hearts  to  seek  Jesus,  who  alone  can  change 
vile  and  arrogant  men  to  live  and  love  like  He  did. 
This  is  what  the  whole  world  needs,  and  such  a 
spirit  in  His  servant  will  move  all  people  to  seek 
our  Saviour. 

The  power  to  live  such  a  life  in  the  trying  con- 
ditions of  the  heathen  lands  comes  from  the  Cross 
— from  the  believer's  touch  with  Jesus  as  He  gave 
Himself  for  the  world.  The  Saviour  is  surely  wait- 
ing to  show  Himself  strong  towards  all  whose  hearts 
are  right  in  their  relation  to  Him,  and  who  wish 
His  life  and  power  to  manifest  His  saving  knowl- 
edge to  those  who  know  Him  not — those  who  wish 
"  to  set  forth  Christ  crucified."  It  is  a  joy  and 
a  comfort  forever  to  the  missionary,  who  anxiously 
seeks  to  manifest  Christ,  to  know  that  he  does  not 
need  to  go  in  his  own  strength.  He  has  His  life 
and  power  freely  given  to  him  under  all  condi- 
tions possible,  so  he  is  without  excuse.  He  has 
all  things  necessary  to  make  his  life  a  measure- 
less force  in  turning  heathen  hearts  to  serve  and 
in  turn  also  manifest  Jesus,  and  thus  join  the  glo- 
rious army  who  are  seeking  everywhere  not  only 
to  believe  on  Christ,  but  suffer  with  Him  in  con- 
quering the  world  for  the  Father's  glory  and  man's 
eternal  good.     It  has  been  said  that  the  missionary 


ILLUSTRATE  MESSAGE  BY  LIFE      107 

comes  nearest  to  Christ  in  service  and  ought  there- 
fore to  come  nearest  to  Him  in  sacrificial  lif^. 
Those  who  fully  enter  into  His  spirit  when  He 
came  not  to  do  His  own  will,  but  the  will  of  Him 
who  sent  Him,  and  gladly  live  to  perpetuate  His 
life  and  carry  out  His  plans,  will  never  lack  for 
grace  and  Divine  power,  and  this  comes  from  the 
Cross  of  Jesus  our  Lord. 

Prof.  A.  R.  Macewen  speaking  about  the  success 
of  the  early  Christians  has  this  to  say :  *'  The  power 
of  the  mission  lay  in  the  fact  that  no  distinction  was 
drawn  between  faith  and  life,  between  the  spiritual 
and  the  moral,  between  the  Cross  Jesus  bore  and  the 
cross  borne  by  His  servants/' 

Dr.  Nassau,  of  Africa:  "  I  have  known  mission- 
aries who  seemed  to  have  come  with  only  a  feel- 
ing of  hard  duty  to  bring  the  Gospel  to  degraded, 
dirty  fellow-members  of  the  human  race.  They 
felt  a  personal  antipathy  to  colour,  dirt,  vermin,  and 
ugly  faces.  Unintentionally  they  showed  their  an- 
tipathy in  their  manners.  The  alert-eyed  native  saw 
it.  Without  at  first  saying  anything  disrespectful, 
they  quietly  gave  them  outward  obedience.  But 
they  never  gave  them  respect,  never  opened  their 
hearts  to  them.  The  teaching  of  such  missionaries 
fell  flat.  They  filled  a  certain  niche  in  the  roll  of 
station  members;  but  they  never  had  influence  for 
good.  Rather,  some  of  them  by  their  harsh  words 
or  curt  manners,  brought  only  evil  to  the  mission- 
ary name." 


108    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

Arthur  H.  Smith,  of  China :  ''  The  Christian 
doctrine  of  the  indwelling  Christ  and  the  power  of 
the  Spirit  to  lift  men  out  of  sins  and  make  them 
new  creatures,  possesses  the  charm  of  novelty  and 
the  inspiration  of  hope.  It  is  the  power  of  Chris- 
tianity to  enable  men  to  lead  a  new  and  higher  life 
which  appeals  to  the  Chinese.  In  the  first  in- 
stance it  is  generally  the  power  of  Christianity 
over  the  moral  life,  the  point  where  their  own 
religions  conspicuously  fail,  which  leads  them  to 
Christ.^^ 

Bishop  Graves,  of  China:  "  Above  all  else,  a  Chi- 
nese is  reached  by  meeting  a  true  Christian.  The 
genuine  change  effected  in  men  by  conversion  is 
possibly  the  strongest  argument  for  Christianity 
which  can  be  used.  In  no  country  is  it  more  true 
that  the  exhibition  of  the  true  Christian  spirit  in 
the  life  of  the  disciple  is  the  supreme  means  of 
appealing  to  the  heart  of  the  Chinese. 

"  The  sympathy,  friendliness,  kindliness  of  Chris- 
tianity tend  to  win  those  who  have  never  been  in 
such  an  atmosphere.  Patience,  love,  and  sympathy 
are  the  three  elements  of  the  Gospel  which  reach 
the  Chinese  heart.'* 

A  native  Chinese  pastor :  "  The  element  in  the 
Christian  Gospel  which  possesses  the  greatest  ap- 
peal is  its  manifestation  of  the  spirit  of  love.  It 
is  this  spirit  appearing  in  the  lives  of  the  Chris- 
tians in  the  form  of  mutual  sympathy  and  help- 
fulness, and  in  opening  hospitals,  schools,  and  other 


ILLUSTRATE  MESSAGE  BY  LIFE      109 

philanthropic  agencies  which,  above  all  others,  ap- 
peal to  the  people." 

Another  Chinese  pastor,  C.  C.  Chang :  "  It  is  the 
intelligence,  kindness,  good  conduct,  helpfulness,  and 
self-sacrifice  and  self-forgetfulness,  patience,  and 
strength  of  Christian  people  and  their  philanthropic 
work  for  the  good  of  men  which  make  the  great- 
est appeal." 

The  Bishop  of  Lahore,  India :  **  I  accept  unre- 
servedly the  modern  position  which  insists  on  sym- 
pathy as  the  greatest  of  all  requisites  in  a  Chris- 
tian apologist  approaching  those  of  another  faith. 
With  an  abundance  of  kind  feeling  for,  and  un- 
sparing labour  and  self-denial  on  behalf  of  Indians 
— Indian  Christians  more  especially — the  mission- 
aries, except  a  very  few  of  the  very  best,  seem  to 
me  to  fail  very  largely  in  getting  rid  of  an  air  of 
patronage  and  condescension  and  in  establishing  a 
genuinely  brotherly  love  and  happy  relation  as  be- 
tween equals — with  their  flock. 

"  I  can  think  of  two  men  priests  in  our  own  com- 
munion— perfectly  genuine  hearty  bluff  men — who 
might  very  likely  do  admirable  work  in  one  of  the 
colonies  among  our  own  people  where  their  want 
of  refinement,  breeding,  and  good  manners  would 
not  be  so  much  noticed;  but  who  among  Indians 
are  simply  impossible  people,  outraging  the  Indians' 
instincts  of  courtesy  and  good  manners  at  every 
moment  of  their  lives  and  *  widening  the  gulf  '  in 
the  most  appalling  way.    Men  of  this  type,  be  their 


110    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

essential  honesty  and  desire  to  serve  the  Lord  what 
it  may,  we  have  no  place  for  them  whatever  in 
India." 

J.  A.  Sharrock  of  India :  "  The  elements  which 
appeal  to  the  Hindu  mind  most  are  the  sinless  life 
of  Christ,  His  sublime  teaching,  and  the  sacrifice  of 
Himself  for  the  good  of  men." 

A  Moslem  convert  says :  "  A  thorough  and  loving 
study  of  the  people  and  their  speech  will  enable  a 
missionary  so  to  present  Christ  that  He  is  Himself 
and,  when  seen,  draws  men  to  Him.  That  which 
made  special  appeal  to  me  in  Christianity  was  the 
lives  of  the  missionaries." 

Galen  M.  Fisher  of  Japan:  "The  Japanese  after 
all  are  more  practical  than  philosophical.  They  are 
decidedly  pragmatic.  Hence  by  far  the  most  con- 
vincing answer  to  their  difficulties  will  not  come 
from  argument  so  much  as  from  the  life  and  wit- 
ness of  Christian  men  whom  they  trust.  As  the 
Japanese  tersely  put  it :  *  Better  than  argument  is 
evidence.'  It  is  nothing  but  the  method  found  so 
effective  by  the  early  Christians  as  told  in  the  Acts, 
*  a  campaign  of  testimony ',  of  Christ-lives." 

H.  A.  A.  Kennedy :  "  Take  earliest  missionary 
document  in  literature,  Paul's  first  letter  to  the 
Thessalonians,  chapter  two,  and  we  get  a  singularly 
attractive  description  of  the  relation  between  the 
missionary  and  his  converts  in  the  early  times.  *  We 
were  gentle  in  the  midst  of  you,  as  a  nurse  cherish- 
eth  her  own  children:  even  so,  being  affectionately 


ILLUSTRATE  MESSAGE  BY  LIFE      111 

desirous  of  you,  we  were  well  pleased  to  impart  unto 
you,  not  the  Gospel  of  God  only,  but  also  our  own 
souls,  because  ye  were  become  very  dear  to  us  * 
(Verses  7ff.).  This  is  the  situation  in  a  sentence. 
It  sets  forth  a  splendid  missionary  ideal,  whose  sig- 
nificance for  the  communities  which  Paul  evangel- 
ized can  scarcely  be  overestimated.  For  it  is  a 
commonplace  that  '  the  best  instrument  in  all  mis- 
sion work  is  the  personality  of  the  missionary '  " 
(Meinel). 

From  all  mission  fields  the  experiences  of  the  mis- 
sionaries show  us  that  the  life  of  the  missionary 
must  set  forth  the  message  which  he  proclaims.  He 
must  study  his  people,  become  in  sympathetic  touch 
with  them,  seek  every  way  possible  to  make  the  true 
message  reach  his  people  in  the  way  that  will  be 
best  understood  and  be  most  effective.  This  can 
be  done  in  no  other  way — certainly  in  no  other 
really  effective  way — but  by  the  power  of  the  Cross 
lived  out  in  the  missionary's  daily  touch  with  the 
people. 


IX 


IT  HOLDS  THE  MISSIONARY  TO  HIS 
WORK  IN  THE  LORD'S  WAY 

THE  missionary  needs  to  have  the  highest 
ideals  and  the  strongest  convictions  to  hold 
him  to  his  work  in  the  Lord's  way.  When 
the  romance  has  passed  away — and  it  will  certainly 
pass  away — and  the  commonplace  duties  become 
the  daily  toil,  then  the  great  trying  days  will  come. 
He  will  be  tested  in  every  way  possible.  Tempta- 
tions will  be  especially  trying  along  the  following 
lines,  namely,  (a)  his  call  to  the  work,  (b)  his 
place  in  the  mission  field,  and  (c)  his  methods  of 
work. 

*  The  missionary  in  the  heathen  atmosphere  re- 
ceives many  a  trial  which  would  be  impossible  in 
the  home  land.  His  greatest  trials  will  not  be  due 
to  climate,  will  not  be  due  to  the  things  we  miss  that 
are  so  dear  to  us  in  the  home  land ;  but  the  trial  that 
far  excels  all  others,  and  intensifies  all,  comes  from  a 
real  positive  force  called  the  "  heathen  atmosphere  " 
— that  indescribable  force  that  must  be  felt  to  be 
realized.  This  is  the  real  test  and  is  common  to  all 
heathen  countries.     This  is  why  all  the  heralds  of 

112 


HOLDS  HIM  TO  HIS  WORK  113 

the  Cross,  who  go  far  hence,  should  be  well  estab- 
lished in  the  Christian  graces.  Every  mission  ought 
to  send  out  only  those  sound  in  the  faith  and  of  a 
sober  mind  lest  the  chilly  withering  atmosphere  of 
heathenism  make  John  Marks  of  those  whose  good- 
ness no  one  questions,  and  who  might  do  good  work 
under  favourable  environments,  but  who  lack  that 
something  that  will  make  a  man  hold  on  when  most 
persons  would  declare  it  of  no  use. 

1.  Soon  after  he  reaches  his  field  and  sees  the 
mountains  before  him,  he  may  enter  into  a  period 
of  doubting,  and  may  commence  to  think:  "  I  fear 
I  was  not  called  to  be  a  missionary.  I  know  I  had 
a  place  in  the  work  of  my  native  land.  I  could  be 
of  some  use  there.  I  do  not  see  how  I  can  ever 
do  the  noble  part  to  the  work  here  that  ought  to  be 
done,  hence  the  best  for  the  work  here  and  the  work 
in  the  home  land,  and  myself  would  be  to  return." 
Happily  but  few  missionaries  are  thus  tempted,  and 
most  of  them  soon  overcome  the  tests  along  this 
line,  and  face  the  future  with  a  growing  conviction 
that  they  are  to  serve  God  in  the  lands  where  the 
needs  are  greatest. 

2.  A  still  more  subtle  temptation  comes  after  he 
has  already  decided  that  he  has  his  work  in  the 
lands  beyond.  He  must  decide  the  place  he  is  to 
have  and  the  kind  of  work  he  is  to  do.  Some  look 
around  them  and  see  the  order  of  things  very  much 
out  of  place,  and  they  feel  that  they  have  been  or- 
dained of  God  to  set  the  order  right.    The  old  mis- 


114     THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

sionaries  are  not  abreast  of  the  times,  and  the  new 
recruit  thinks  the  first  important  duty  is  to  get 
others  right.  He  thinks  his  greatest  sacrifice  was 
made  in  leaving  the  home  land,  and  on  the  foreign 
field  he  ought  to  have  special  consideration.  This 
class  have  often  to  struggle  long  and  fight  their 
battles,  like  the  Master,  over  and  over  again.  Their 
greatest  temptation  will  come  as  with  their  Saviour 
in  seeking  to  win  kingship  apart  from  the  Cross. 
In  their  work  they  will  need  to  say  constantly  to 
Satan :  "  Get  thee  behind  me :  thou  savourest  not 
the  things  that  be  of  God,  but  those  that  be  of  men." 
Far  the  most  subtle  temptation  will  come  in  the 
kind  of  work  they  are  to  do  and  the  place  where 
this  is  to  be  done.  They  will  be  tempted  to  avoid 
the  hardships  and  ever-increasing  opportunity  to 
enter  into  the  fellowship  of  the  Lord's  conflict. 
They  will  find  many  excuses  for  not  launching  out 
into  the  deep,  and  will  be  tempted  to  join  in  the 
throng  who  say  that  risk  and  exposure  are  fool- 
hardiness,  and  it  is  best  to  stay  near  the  shore,  and 
use  well  the  batteries  already  lifted.  Many  a  young 
hopeful  missionary  is  most  severely  tried  just 
here. 

Most  missionaries  as  they  learn  more  fully  the 
meaning  and  demands  of  the  Cross  in  the  hearts  of 
every  one  who  is  linked  to  his  Master  for  world 
conquest,  see  the  folly  and  utter  uselessness  of 
always  seeking  to  spare  themselves  if  they  are  to 
be  servants — ambassadors — representing  Him  who 


HOLDS  HIM  TO  HIS  WORK  115 

has  sent  them  forth.  They  soon  find  that  He  has 
sent  them  unto  the  work  in  order  that  they  might 
represent  Him,  and  they  can  do  this  only  as  they 
seek  to  lose  themselves  in  His  abundant  service. 
Not  only  will  the  highest  and  best  service  follow, 
but  their  own  most  noble  self  will  be  its  best  because 
Christ  is  all  and  in  all.  Then  they  will  find  the 
unspeakable  joy  of  following  the  Master  always, 
permitting  His  will  to  be  supreme.  There  will  soon 
dawn  upon  such  lives  the  never-ending  influence  of 
all  who  enter  His  warfare  unto  death,  if  need  be, 
without  reservation,  being  assured  of  His  presence 
in  all  the  days,  and  the  power  to  meet  every  trial 
and  every  demand  of  the  work.  When  this  is  done, 
the  glory  and  passion  for  the  work  will  overwhelm 
the  missionary  as  he  ever  marches  to  orders  in  liv- 
ing touch  with  the  potency  of  Him  who  holds  all 
dominions  and  powers  in  His  hand.  How  joyful 
becomes  his  work!  No  trial,  no  work  too  menial, 
no  day  is  lived  in  vain,  no  hardships!  He  has  all 
his  soul  could  wish  when  he  has  given  his  all  to 
the  Lord's  plans.  He  would  not  exchange  his  place 
for  any  other  in  the  world.  He  learns  in  whatever 
place  he  is  therewith  to  be  content.  If  he  is  just 
permitted  to  continue  in  the  work,  he  will  be  satis- 
fied, and  like  John  G.  Paton,  if  he  had  a  thousand 
lives,  he  would  gladly  give  them  all  to  make  Christ 
known  where  He  has  not  been  so  much  as  named. 
This  is  true  of  many  who  remain  on  the  foreign 
field,  yet  there  are  a  few  who  never  conquer  the 


116    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

insidious  temptation  to  avoid  the  way  of  the  Cross. 
They  may  remain  on  the  field  as  derelicts  who  are 
the  shame  and  sorrow  of  all  missionaries  after  the 
Master's  ideal.  They  are  partly  the  occasion  of 
many  cruel  attacks  on  missions  by  men  and  women 
whose  very  life  and  spirit  manifest  him  who  is  the 
accuser  of  the  brethren.  Although  such  men  and 
women  will  always  find  an  opportunity  to  aid  the 
enemy  of  all  righteousness,  yet  for  the  work  of 
those  who  are  doing  the  Saviour's  biddings,  these 
derelicts  should  be  removed,  and  only  those  remain 
whose  lives  and  work  partake  of  the  spirit  of  their 
Master. 

3.  Another  great  temptation  comes  in  the 
methods  we  are  to  use  to  extend  the  Lord's  kingdom 
in  the  heathen  lands. 

Methods  are  many,  and  no  missionary  ought  to 
be  a  stickler  for  methods.  He  soon  learns  that 
methods  are  not  necessarily  sacred  though  hoary 
with  age  and  endeared  by  memories  of  others.  He 
will  come  to  understand  that  neither  Western  nor 
Eastern  methods  are  of  any  avail  within  themselves. 
Decrees,  councils,  doctrinal  statements  are  not 
always  suited  to  his  needs,  and  may  become  real 
burdens  to  him  in  his  new  environments.  He  will 
want  to  be  free  from  all  these  entanglements  im- 
posed on  us  by  men^  yet  he  will  love  the  simple  prin- 
ciples of  the  Master's  life  and  teaching  with  greater 
zeal  as  he  sees  these  relieved  of  all  human  excres- 
cences.   If  the  missionary's  work  is  to  count  for  the 


HOLDS  HIM  TO  HIS  WORK  117 

most,  it  must  be  patterned  after  the  work  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Methods  are  not  important  as 
long  as  we  are  true  to  the  realities  of  the  Cross — 
the  methods  will  come  naturally  to  suit  conditions — 
but  the  principles  our  Saviour  emphasized  in  win- 
ning kingship  must  ever  be  preserved  and  duly  em- 
phasized in  all  our  efforts  to  establish  His  reign  in 
non-Christian  lands. 

Jesus  was  not  so  much  concerned  about  numbers 
as  the  quality  of  His  followers.  He  did  not  have  a 
great  many  disciples  at  the  end  of  His  earthly  min- 
istry, but  He  imparted  such  a  life  to  those  who  had 
believed  that  they  won  thousands  in  a  few  days. 
He  never  lowered  His  principles  to  suit  earthly  de- 
mands. He  was  sincere  and  frank  to  the  great 
multitudes  who  wanted  at  first  to  follow  Him.  He 
told  them  just  what  it  meant.  They  must  be  pre- 
pared to  enter  into  His  life  of  giving  all  and  leaving 
all,  or  they  were  not  worthy  to  be  His  disciples. 
The  only  converts  worth  while  were  those  who  were 
willing  to  enter  into  His  Cross-bearing  life.  Men 
won  by  other  methods  than  His,  and  who  do  not 
know  what  real  discipleship  means,  will  become  a 
curse  to  the  work  in  the  testing  days.  To  know 
nothing  among  the  heathen  but  Christ  and  Him 
crucified  will  appear  foolishness  to  them  at  first 
and  will  be  a  stumbling-block,  but  it  is  the  only  way 
to  reach  the  fountain  springs  of  the  heathen  heart 
and  cause  him  to  give  the  Master  Lordship  in  his 
life,    Then  he  will  say : 


118    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

"  I  welcome  then  with  heart  sincere, 
The  Cross  my  Saviour  bids  me  take ; 
No  load,  no  trial  is  severe 
That's  borne  or  suffered  for  His  sake; 
And  thus  my  sorrow  shall  proclaim, 
A  love  that's  worthy  of  His  name." 

To  the  best  missionaries  dark  days  will  come. 
They  will  pass  under  the  cloud  and  then  only  by  the 
assurance  their  Saviour  has  passed  this  way,  and  has 
borne  the  Cross  for  them,  can  they  stand.  Sorrow 
will  be  intensified  by  their  separation  from  all  those 
who  can  truly  sympathize  with  them.  In  the  dark 
days  they  will  probably  have  some  idea  how  the 
Master  felt  when  He  said :  "  My  God,  My  God  why 
hast  Thou  forsaken  Me  ?  "  Judson,  in  writing  to 
his  wife's  sisters  soon  after  he  was  left  alone  on 
the  foreign  field  says :  "  You  will  see  from  the  date 
it  is  the  second  anniversary  of  the  triumph  of  death 
of  all  my  hopes  of  earthly  bliss.  It  proves  a  stormy 
evening,  and  the  desolation  around  me  accords  with 
the  desolate  state  of  my  own  mind,  when  the  grief 
for  the  dear  departed  combines  with  sorrow  for 
present  sins,  and  my  tears  at  the  same  time  flow  over 
the  forsaken  grave  of  my  love  and  over  the  loath- 
some sepulchre  of  my  own  heart."  A  year  later  he 
again  wrote :  *'  Have  either  of  you  learned  the  real 
art  of  communion  with  God  and  can  you  teach  me 
the  first  principles?     God  is  to  me  the  great  Un- 


HOLDS  HIM  TO  HIS  WORK  119 

known.  I  believe  in  Him,  but  I  find  Him  not."  In 
these  days  of  intense  trial  the  missionary  must  be- 
lieve in  the  certainties  of  the  Cross — must  realize 
that  Christ  passed  through  greater  trials  that  we 
shall  ever  need  to  bear  in  order  that  He  might  suc- 
cour us  when  we  need  Him  most.  Unless  the  mis- 
sionary counts  as  a  reality  what  the  Saviour  has 
done  for  him,  and  is  conscious  of  His  presence  in 
all  the  days,  he  will  falter  and  not  dare  to  continue 
where  only  trials  may  await  him.  But  thanks  be 
unto  God  for  His  unspeakable  gift  which  enables 
the  missionary  to  come  out  of  all  more  than  con- 
queror through  Him  that  loved  him.  The  power 
of  the  crucified  One  within  can  enable  the  mission- 
ary to  stand  all  the  trials  and  thereby  glorify  Him 
who  has  placed  him  in  these  places. 

The  more  the  missionary  suffers  or  gives  of  his 
life  for  the  work  the  more  he  loves  it.  Possibly  he 
is  on  the  foreign  field  at  first  not  because  he  loves 
the  natives.  He  may  care  for  them  in  the  tenderest 
way,  and  does  feel  that  he  owes  them  a  debt  be- 
cause of  what  Christ  has  done  for  him ;  however,  he 
is  there  primarily  because  he  wants  to  do  the  Lord's 
will.  He  suffers  not  because  he  believes  there  is 
any  virtue  for  him  in  mere  suffering,  but  he  has 
become  a  loyal  soldier  of  Jesus  Christ  to  subdue 
hearts  for  the  Father's  rule,  and  soldiers  in  the  for- 
eign field  of  this  class  are  not  called  to  stay  in  the 
barracks,  but  to  go  in  the  way  and  with  the  aims 


120    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

that  move  their  Captain.  As  the  battles  intensify 
and  the  true  soldierly  spirit  of  the  Lord  of  glory 
is  exercised,  the  determination  grows  and  the  con- 
viction is  strengthened  that  they  are  called  for  this 
very  purpose,  and  they  joyfully  suffer  anything  that 
His  will  may  be  done. 

Carey  of  India,  Morrison  of  China,  and  Judson 
of  Burma  suffered  long  years  of  privation  and  hard- 
ships before  they  saw  any  results  of  their  labours; 
but  at  the  most  discouraging  time  from  a  human 
standpoint,  they  were  unshaken  in  their  faith  and 
determined  to  press  on,  knowing  that  the  promises 
of  God  are  yea  and  amen  in  Christ  Jesus.  They 
were  neither  willing  to  withdraw  nor  compromise — 
they  were  determined  to  go  forward  as  the  Master 
taught  and  win  by  His  methods,  and  win  they  did. 
They  might  have  relinquished  the  demands  of  the 
Cross,  withheld  the  principles  of  discipleship  in  the 
Master's  services,  tmduly  emphasized  the  blessings 
that  the  world  so  much  appreciates  and  won  many 
more  converts  at  first;  but  their  work,  nevertheless, 
would  have  been  a  failure.  There  is  no  other  way 
of  real  and  permanent  success  in  the  world's  con- 
flict except  by  the  Cross. 

"When  the  woes  of  life  o'ertake  me, 
Hopes  deceive  and  fears  annoy, 
Never  shall  the  Cross  forsake  me: 
Lo !  it  glows  with  peace  and  joy. 


HOLDS  HIM  TO  HIS  WORK  121 

'  Bane  and  blessing,  pain  and  pleasure, 
By  the  Cross  are  sanctified ; 
Peace  is  there  that  knows  no  measure, 
Joys  that  through  all  time  abide." 


IT  ASSURES  FINAL  VICTORY 

WHEN  I  say  the  Cross  assures  final  victory, 
I  do  not  mean  victory  over  our  dark  days 
only,  but  it  gives  this  and  far  more.  We 
by  the  forces  of  the  Cross  start  a  work  in  the 
hearts  of  the  natives  which  will  go  on  and  on  until 
all  shall  know  Him  from  the  least  to  the  greatest. 
There  comes  to  the  heathen  life  through  the  power 
of  the  Cross  the  same  desire  and  life  which  char- 
acterized our  Master  as  He  walked  among  men. 
Those  who  formerly  persecuted  **  that  way "  be- 
come the  most  zealous  to  declare  that  there  is  life 
eternal  through  no  other;  and  they,  too,  become 
radiant  lights  to  shine  in  the  hearts  of  those  who 
know  not  the  truth.  This  is  the  sure  hope  and 
assurance  of  our  final  victory. 

The  missionary  soon  realizes  after  he  surveys  the 
situation  that  if  the  Lord's  message  is  to  conquer 
in  non-Christian  lands,  it  must  become  naturalized : 
Christianity  will  need  to  be  naturalized  before  it 
can  conquer  heathen  religions.  It  must  find  perma- 
nent growth  on  the  native  soil,  drive  out  the  weeds 
of  error  and  superstition  by  planting  itself  in  the 
hearts  of  the  natives,  not  as  a  foreign  religion,  but 

122 


ASSURES  FINAL  VICTORY  123 

as  the  eternal  truth  and  light  that  come  from  the 
Giver  of  all  truth  and  light.  This  is  seen  to  be  the 
crm:  of  the  conflict  by  reason  of  the  array  of  the 
forces  of  darkness  that  immediately  arise  and  com- 
bine against  the  intrusion  of  the  new  doctrine,  "  not 
lawful  for  us  to  believe,  being  Romans."  The  na- 
tional pride  and  customs  of  the  fathers  in  many 
complicated  ways  assert  themselves  "  and  take  coun- 
sel together"  to  thwart  the  power  and  life  of  the 
meek  and  lowly  Nazarene.  These  forces  of  dark- 
ness seem  to  be  conscious  that,  as  the  truths  of 
Christianity  take  form  and  virility  in  the  hearts  of 
the  natives,  the  Christ-life  in  them  will  be  perma- 
nent and  self-aggressive. 

The  foreigner  missionar}^  can  never  fully  and 
truly  represent  Christianity  on  heathen  soil.  He 
cannot  do  this  as  well  as  one  of  the  natives  if  this 
native  is  thoroughly  imbued  by  the  spirit  of  the 
Master;  hence  the  missionary  soon  says,  "  I  must 
decrease  and  you  must  increase."  He  longs  for  the 
natives  to  have  formed  in  them  the  life  of  the  cruci- 
fied One,  and  then  go  forth  as  leaders  of  the  work 
among  their  fellow-countrymen.  The  man  who 
does  most  for  Christianity  will  ever  magnify  the 
possibility  of  the  native  convert.  He  will  push  for- 
ward the  natives  every  way  possible,  and  make  it 
easy  for  them  to  take  the  leading  part  in  the  on- 
ward forces  of  His  kingdom.  At  first  the  mission- 
ary can  lord  it  over  the  natives  without  much  resist- 
ance.    They  will  bear  many  things  from  the  man 


124    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

who  holds  the  financial  power ;  yet  this  ruling  power 
of  the  missionary,  though  he  does  hold  the  financial 
responsibility,  will  make  the  natives  weak  and  slow 
to  assume  an  aggressive  spirit.  The  man  who  as- 
sumes such  an  attitude  will  force  them  to  be 
cramped  in  their  service.  Such  a  policy  will  never 
lay  foundations  for  permanent  and  healthful  growth 
on  foreign  soil.  Such  a  missionary  will  never  in- 
augurate self -propagating  centres  of  Christian  ac- 
tivity which  will  stand  all  disintegrating  forces 
within  and  without,  and  marching  forward  conquer- 
ing other  fields.  Christianity  must  be  freed  of  its 
foreign  stigma  and  firmly  planted  in  the  hearts  of 
the  natives  before  it  can  overcome  the  existing  re- 
ligions much  less  adequately  meet  the  needs  of  the 
heathen  peoples. 

But  can  Christianity  in  its  purity,  as  seen  in  the 
ability  to  demand  and  hold  complete  allegiance,  re- 
produce itself  on  heathen  soil  where  the  native  life 
and  customs  from  time  immemorial  are  diametri- 
cally opposed  to  it?  Do  all  religions  mean  light 
from  a  common  sun  whose  rays  are  transformed  by 
the  prisms  of  human  hearts  and  human  needs  to 
meet  the  peculiar  conditions  of  all  peoples?  Do  the 
great  races  have  their  peculiar  modes  of  thought  and 
life,  and  are  the  different  religions  all  true,  but 
simply  truth  modified  in  its  adjustment — mercifully 
too — so  it  can  be  comprehended  and  appropriated 
by  all  classes  and  races  of  men?  Or  do  we  find  that 
the  nations  because  of  their  evil  devices  did  not  wish 


ASSURES  FINAL  VICTORY  125 

to  retain  God  in  their  knowledge,  have  minds  void 
of  understanding  and  are  given  over  to  their  own 
lusts,  living  in  wickedness  no  one  can  describe,  and 
needs  to  be  seen  to  be  believed  ? 

The  beauty  of  Christianity  is  seen  in  its  greatest 
splendour  in  its  ability  to  meet  the  needs  of  all 
peoples  in  their  fountains  of  life.  It  can  readily 
adjust  itself  to  the  mode  of  thought  and  life  of  all 
peoples,  and  yet  remain  true  to  the  principles  of  its 
life-giving  power.  The  missionary's  heart  is  often 
thrilled  with  indescribable  joy  as  he  sees  the  natives 
rapidly  coming  into  possession  of  the  Master's 
powers  and  graces.  His  "  joy  and  crown  "  is  to  see 
the  native  converts,  so  recently  from  heathenism, 
showing  the  same  beautiful  spirit  of  sacrifice  and 
courage  which  characterizes  the  true  servants  of 
God  in  all  ages.  They  are  born  from  above,  chil- 
dren of  the  Highest,  old  things  have  passed  away, 
behold  all  things  have  become  new ;  yet  still  they  are 
Chinese,  Japanese,  Indians,  South  Sea  Islanders,  or 
Africans  with  their  native  characteristics;  but  trans- 
formed unto  the  likeness  of  Him  who  has  called 
them  into  His  service.  This  is  the  power  and  the 
beauty  and  glory  of  Christianity!  No  man  any- 
where in  the  world,  who  yields  himself  fully  to 
Christ  and  walks  with  Him,  will  fail  to  be  trans- 
formed unto  His  likeness.  This  fact  is  the  hope 
and  the  inspiration  of  the  missionary,  and  every  one 
with  a  few  years  of  practical  experience  in  the  for- 
eign field  remembers  examples  of  those  whose  quick 


126    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

transformation  has  become  the  joy  and  marvel  of 
his  mission  hfe.  The  Western  worker  may  find 
much  to  encourage  him  in  reading  books  Hke 
"  Twice  Born  Men  " ;  however,  the  average  mission- 
ary during  the  last  few  years  in  China  can  recall 
many  examples  of  "  the  wonderful  working  power  " 
of  the  Gospel  to  change  speedily  the  native  hearts, 
formerly  entirely  under  the  sway  of  heathen  life 
and  environment  unto  hearts  wholly  given  to  the 
Lord's  service,  that  are  more  than  a  repetition  of 
what  the  author  of  "  Twice  Born  Men  "  saw  in  his 
tours  among  the  castaways  of  London  society. 
These  natives  break  with  all  that  has  been  held  in 
the  past  as  the  most  sacred  in  the  memories  of  their 
families;  forced  from  the  previous  alignment  that 
protects  them  in  their  business  and  clan  relations 
and  shields  them  in  troubles  common  to  the  civiliza- 
tion of  their  country;  and  declare  themselves,  even 
until  death,  a  sincere  follower  of  Him  who  is  in- 
visible, yet  the  all  powerful  and  comforting  One  in 
their  lives.  As  they  turn  from  these  things  and  the 
gods,  that  have  ever  been  the  familiar  scenes  of 
their  homes,  and  their  only  hope  in  ages  past  and 
declare  they  have  found  in  the  world's  Redeemer 
the  power  and  joy  for  which  they  would  not  give 
the  world  in  exchange,  then  the  missionary's  heart 
rises  in  praise  and  adoration  to  his  God  and  Saviour. 
As  he  sees  these  things  he  is  led  as  never  before  to 
realize  the  Master's  great  power.  All  His  promises 
are  fulfilled. 


ASSURES  FINAL  VICTORY  127 

Recently  probably  the  most  beloved  native 
preacher  in  South  China  received  a  call  to  a  church 
on  the  Pacific  coast.  For  years  his  ambition  had 
been  to  visit  the  United  States  and  see  something  of 
the  work  in  this  country.  The  church  that  called 
him  agreed  to  give  him  a  salary  more  than  twice  as 
large  as  he  was  getting  in  China.  He  was  anxious 
to  bring  his  boys  to  this  country  and  give  them  a 
Western  education.  Also  he  wanted  to  come  and 
see  something  of  the  church  work  here  in  order  to 
be  able  to  lead  his  own  people  in  China  to  more  ef- 
ficient service.  These  things  were  pressing  him  to 
accept  the  call.  He  prayed  much  about  the  question. 
Many  of  the  missionaries  and  native  Christians  also 
prayed  and  said  to  him :  "  We  cannot  spare  you 
now.  You  are  needed  in  this  critical  period  of  your 
nation's  life.  You  must  help  us  sow  and  reap." 
They  joined  him,  however,  and  said :  "  Not  my  will, 
but  Thine  be  done."  After  much  earnest  prayer 
and  waiting  before  Him,  the  native  pastor  said :  "  I 
have  received  the  Lord's  leading,  and  I  will  not  go. 
I  will  continue  in  the  work  here."  This  faithful 
preacher  had  manifested  the  Saviour's  love  and 
spirit.  Many  examples  could  be  given  to  show  that 
the  native  Christians  are  ever  seeking  to  obtain  the 
Lord's  leadings,  and  when  once  obtained,  they  are 
willing  to  follow  though  it  may  mean  many  hard- 
ships and  deprivations;  but  it  is  the  way  of  victory, 
and  this  is  the  main  thing  in  their  hearts.  No  one 
would  claim  all  Christians  in  any  heathen  land  are 


128    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

ready  to  manifest  fully  the  Master's  spirit  at  all 
times,  yet  there  are  enough,  who  are  willing,  to  give 
great  hope  and  much  assurance  of  victory. 

The  struggle  of  1900,  known  as  the  Boxer  Up- 
rising, was  a  revelation  to  the  Christian  world  as 
well  as  to  the  scoffer,  who  had  in  the  past  delighted 
to  join  Satan  in  the  withering,  taunting  remark: 
"  Does  the  Chinese  Christian  serve  God  for  naught? 
Touch  his  life  and  he  will  deny  God."  Through- 
out the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land  the  emis- 
saries of  the  powers  of  darkness  went  everywhere 
seeking  to  devour  any  man,  woman,  or  child  who 
would  not  bow  down  before  the  idols.  It  was  a  test 
that  tried  men's  hearts.  Nowhere  in  history  do  we 
see  the  lines  between  Christianity  and  paganism 
drawn  more  closely.  It  was  a  test  to  see  if  these 
followers  of  Jesus,  who  claim  to  love  Him  and  be 
true  even  unto  death,  meant  what  they  said.  The 
trial  was  the  most  subtle  and  insidious  possible. 
Owing  to  the  fact  that  several  of  the  leading  world 
powers  had  tried  to  partition  China  into  spheres  of 
influence,  and  thus  destroy  the  integrity  of  the 
nation  (a  real  movement  and  mostly  the  cause  of 
the  Boxer  Uprising)  all  who  confessed  to  be  Chris- 
tians were  thought  to  be  allied  with  the  foreigners 
and  traitors  to  the  nation's  welfare.  The  Christians 
could  protest  vehemently  against  such  accusations, 
but  it  was  impossible  to  give  satisfactory  evidence  to 
the  fanatical  "  Boxer  ".  The  only  thing  that  would 
satisfy  him  would  be  the  Christian's  willingness  to 


ASSURES  FINAL  VICTORY  129 

deny  the  foreigner's  God.  To  do  this  the  Christian 
must  bow  down  before  the  idols — burn  incense  to 
the  gods  of  our  fathers,  our  country's  gods,  and  not 
serve  the  God  of  our  enemies.  Even  the  missionary 
not  only  felt  most  keenly  for  the  native  Christians, 
but  often  wondered  who  would  be  able  to  stand 
against  such  trials  of  their  faith.  What  did  the 
results  show? 

They  stood  gloriously.  Never  since  Christ  gave 
up  His  life  on  the  Cross,  have  we  had  greater  trials 
and  more  glorious  results.  They  counted  not  their 
lives  dear  unto  themselves.  They  gave  up  all  that 
they  might  witness  a  good  confession,  and  stop  the 
mouths  of  evil  men,  and  show  how  heathen  men 
and  women  fresh  from  the  folds  of  idol  worshippers 
are  strong  in  the  Lord  and  the  power  of  His  might. 
A  writer,  who  had  a  most  excellent  opportunity  to 
know  the  exact  situation,  says :  "  Their  heathen  per- 
secutors, like  the  Roman  officials,  seemed  to  make  it 
easy  for  the  native  Christians  to  recant.  Only  a 
nod  of  the  head  before  the  idol,  only  burning  a 
little  incense,  even  if  you  do  not  mean  it,  will  suf- 
fice. But  even  feeble  women  and  little  children 
waxed  strong  to  resist  these  subtle  pleadings."  The 
churches  of  China  have  a  long  list  of  those,  whose 
records  are  in  heaven,  who  would  not  accept  de- 
liverance at  the  sacrifice  or  denial  of  the  truth. 
Some  were  burned,  some  were  cut  to  pieces,  some 
strangled,  others  tied  in  the  woods  and  fields  to  be 
devoured  by  the  wild  beasts — victims  of  the  most 


130     THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

cruel  methods  of  torture  known  to  the  heathen 
world.  The  spirit  of  Him  who  had  given  His  life 
for  them  on  the  Cross  had  prevailed  in  their  hearts, 
and  thus  they  made  known  to  their  generation,  and 
all  who  shall  come  after  them,  that  Jesus  had  in 
reality  given  His  spirit  to  the  natives  of  China.  No 
one  who  knows  what  these  native  Christians  en- 
dured for  His  sake,  can  ever  again  doubt  that  they 
conquered  not  by  human  strength,  but  by  His  in- 
dwelling life  and  spirit.  This  was  suiBcient  in  their 
great  trial  of  faith. 

There  was  a  little  Presbyterian  church  near  the 
city  gate  of  Peking,  the  nation's  capital,  that  may 
be  taken  as  a  fair  representative  of  a  large  number 
of  the  churches  of  China.  The  church  had  sixty 
members.  When  the  missionaries  and  other  for- 
eigners of  that  section  went  to  the  Legation  for 
mutual  protection,  the  members  of  this  church  re- 
mained in  their  homes,  and  rendered  what  assis- 
tance they  could  to  those  in  the  Legation.  When 
the  fatal  day  came — the  day  when  the  Boxers  over- 
ran the  city  outside  of  the  Legation — these  Chris- 
tians were  hunted  out  and  asked  to  recant  by  bowing 
before  the  idols.  One  by  one  they  were  put  to  the 
test.  Every  possible  inducement  was  offered  to 
persuade  them  to  recant,  but  they  would  not.  Out 
of  the  sixty  members,  only  two  recanted  and  were 
spared  to  tell  the  fate  of  the  others.  When  the 
awful  storm  was  over  and  the  missionary  could  re- 
turn, even  these  two  were  greatly  grieved  that  they 


ASSURES  FINAL  VICTORY  131 

had  denied  their  Lord.  Doubtless  all  churches  in 
China  did  not  make  the  record  of  sacrifices  this  one 
did,  but  we  can  thank  God  and  ever  take  courage 
that  there  was  even  one  found. 

The  conflict  was  not  in  vain.  It  was  necessary. 
It  was  the  last  great  struggle  (we  hope)  of  heathen 
darkness  to  drive  back  the  encroaching  army  of  the 
King  of  kings.  Feeble  hearts  and  eyes  but  faintly 
seeing  in  the  home  land  needed  the  struggle.  The 
churches  of  China  must  be  purified  in  the  furnace 
of  affliction.  A  new  epoch  must  be  ushered  in,  and 
these  births  of  endless  consequences  always  come 
with  travail.  How  thankful  we  are  now  that  it  is 
over,  and  the  new  and  better  day  has  come.  These 
sacrificed  and  entered  on  rest,  but  the  smoke  of 
their  sacrifices  continues  to  rise  to  the  Father's 
throne  as  a  sweet  fragrance.  It  shall  ever  rise  and 
inspire  the  churches  of  the  Middle  Kingdom  to 
heroic  deeds.  It  will  purify  and  energize  these 
churches  till  Christ's  work  on  earth  is  complete. 

The  Messiah  who  won  by  what  the  world  counted 
complete  failure — His  humiliation  and  seeming  de- 
feat, being  His  greatest  victory — can,  from  His 
exalted  position  at  the  Father's  side,  waiting  for  His 
enemies  to  become  His  footstool,  so  sensitize  the 
hearts  of  the  native  Christians  in  all  lands  who  will 
permit  His  will  to  be  supreme  in  their  lives,  that  He 
will  cause  them  to  reproduce  the  endless  life  and 
limitless  power  of  Himself  as  they  live  for  the  one 
purpose  of  making  His  kingdom  supreme  on  earth. 


132    THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

The  missionary,  who  will  do  most  to  encourage  the 
native  Christians  "  to  walk  in  His  steps  "  and  repro- 
duce His  life  in  their  relation  to  their  fellowmen, 
will  certainly  do  most  to  establish  His  kingdom  in 
the  hearts  of  all  men. 

As  we  see  what  the  natives  are  doing  for  Christ, 
and  behold  the  spirit  they  manifest  in  their  devotion 
to  their  Redeemer  in  seeking  to  do  His  work,  we 
are  sure  the  way  of  victory — sure  victory — has 
been  opened,  and  none  will  be  able  to  close  this  way. 
As  we  see  how  readily  some  of  them  give  out  of 
their  poverty,  even  beyond  their  ability,  that  Chris- 
tianity may  be  firmly  established  among  them,  and 
"  His  saving  health  among  all  men  "  may  be  made 
known,  we  are  encouraged  to  believe  that  the  same 
motives  and  loyal  spirit  and  sacrifice  are  in  their 
hearts  which  have  ever  been  the  propelling  forces 
of  Christianity.  Independent  churches,  hospitals, 
schools,  orphanages,  committees  for  the  extension 
of  His  kingdom  in  the  unoccupied  fields,  general 
interest  in  all  things  that  make  for  the  coming  of 
His  world-reign, — these  things  give  us  assurance  of 
final  victory ;  they  show  us  that  Christ  is  formed  in 
them,  the  hope  and  glory  of  the  work;  these  things 
manifest  that  they  are  moved  by  the  atoning  spirit 
that  dominated  our  Lord  in  all  He  did,  and  this 
gives  us  the  assurance  of  final  victory  in  the  foreign 
fields. 

The  supremacy  of  Christianity  in  the  non-Chris- 
tian lands  does  not  depend  on  the  number  of  mis- 


ASSURES  FINAL  VICTORY  133 

sionaries  who  go  to  the  foreign  fields  nor  the 
amount  of  money  we  send  these  workers  on  the  field 
— these  are  really  secondary  factors — the  final  issue 
depends  upon  the  natives  as  to  whether  they  will  re- 
produce the  Master's  teaching  in  concrete  examples. 
The  men  and  the  money  that  help  to  make  this  pos- 
sible will  lend  to  the  consummation  of  the  real  is- 
sue, but  if  they  fail  to  help  in  the  vital  thing,  then 
they  are  indeed  hindrances  to  the  final  conquest  of 
the  land.  We  need  to  pray  more  for  the  natives, 
induce  them  in  every  way  possible  to  take  the  lead, 
encourage  them  to  have  no  model  but  Him,  follow 
always  the  Spirit,  who  speaks  not  of  Himself,  but  of 
Christ,  their  Master  and  ours,  make  it  easier  and 
easier  for  the  native  Christians  to  take  not  only  the 
work  we  now  have,  but  lead  out  into  the  unoccupied 
fields.  This  being  true,  we  should  give  more  atten- 
tion to  the  training  of  the  men  called  of  God;  who 
give  good  evidence  of  being  wise  and  consecrated 
leaders  of  their  own  people,  "  able  to  teach  others 
also";  whose  visions  accord  with  His,  and  their 
lives  set  forth  Christ  crucified;  for  whom  to  live  will 
be  Christ.  We  should  be  more  concerned  about  the 
quality  of  the  native  Christian  ministers,  more 
anxious  to  see  Christ  formed  in  them,  emphasizing 
the  characteristics  of  true  greatness  in  His  leaders  in 
all  ages,  desiring  above  everything  else  that  the 
spirit,  purpose,  and  ideals  of  our  Lord  will  ever 
dominate  their  lives.  By  doing  this  our  gifts  of  men 
and  money  will  go  furthest,  our  work  will  be  more 


134     THE  CROSS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

enduring,  our  victory  will  be  sure  because  we  are 
following  the  most  natural  and  wise  course  with  any 
people — hence  surely  God's  way — of  planting  Chris- 
tianity in  the  hearts  of  the  heathen  and  making  His 
world  conquest  complete.  Apart  from  the  Cross 
this  task  would  he  hopeless,  but  in  the  Cross  we 
have  all  the  power  and  every  ideal  necessary  to  make 
victory  sure. 


PART  III 
THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 


XI 


THE  MISSION  MOVEMENTS  THAT 
HAVE  FAILED 

HISORY  IS  a  wise  teacher  for  those  who  will 
study  it  properly,  looking  for  the  prin- 
ciples that  have  meant  success  in  the 
Master's  work,  and  those  that  have  brought  about 
failure.  If  we  will  watch  in  the  long  chain  of  events 
for  the  causes  and  effects,  we  will  be  able  to  steer 
away  from  the  treacherous  reefs  and  sail  in  the 
open  seas  along  the  safe  courses.  Apart  from 
revelation  the  servant  of  God  finds  His  ways  in  his- 
tory, and  history  confirms  revelation.  One  of  the 
methods  of  testing  prophecy,  as  given  in  God's 
Word,  is  to  see  if  what  the  prophet  foretold  came  to 
pass.  We  need  in  these  days  to  study  the  finger  of 
God  in  past  events  to  understand  those  things  that 
have  received  His  approbation  or  condemnation. 

Church  history,  rightly  understood  in  its  relation 
to  all  movements  in  civilization,  is  the  most  im- 
portant study  for  God's  people  apart  from  the 
Bible.  We  ought  to  search  diligently  the  pages  of 
church  history.  Although  darkness  dims  the  path 
and  mars  the  tracks  of  past  events  at  many  points, 

137 


138     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

yet  there  is  enough  that  is  clear  and  certain  about 
the  force  that  had  made  for  and  that  has  hin- 
dered the  things  of  the  kingdom  among  men  to 
make  the  study  at  this  time  one  of  surpassing  im- 
portance. 

In  our  study  of  the  forces  that  have  done  most 
to  make  Christianity  what  it  is  today,  we  shall 
need  to  confine  ourselves  solely  to  those  that  have 
been  of  epochal  importance,  noticing  only  the  men 
and  movements  that  have  marked  crises  in  Chris- 
tianity's expansion.  As  Dr.  Blaikie  said  of  Ruther- 
ford, "  there  have  been  men  who  belonged  to  a  chain 
of  spiritual  magnets,  kings  of  men,  higher  by  head 
and  shoulders  than  their  fellows,  who  have  ap- 
peared from  age  to  age  since  the  beginning  of  the 
Christian  era,  and  have  given  a  new  impulse  to 
Christian  thought,  a  new  direction  to  Christian  ac- 
tivity, and  a  new  warmth  to  Christian  devotion.'* 
Into  these  lives  and  movements  we  need  to  look 
briefly  and  learn  what  was  the  one  principle  domi- 
nating them  in  their  work  of  such  far-reaching  in- 
fluence. Happy  shall  we  be  if  the  Spirit  of  all 
truth  will  guide  our  investigation  so  as  to  reveal 
plainly  the  ever-moving  power  of  the  Lord's  work 
in  these  epochal  movements. 

The  movements  that  have  failed  as  missionary 
efforts  have  many  important  lessons  for  us.  The 
successful  general  often  learns  more  from  his  seem- 
ing failures  than  his  successes.  Washington  ex- 
celled almost  all  generals  in  his  retreats.     Many 


MISSION  MOVEMENTS  THAT  FAILED     139 

of  the  most  helpful  facts  may  appear  from  certain 
attempts  to  advance  the  kingdom  of  God  that  have 
failed.  Some  have  signally  failed.  They  started 
well,  went  smoothly  at  first,  but  utterly  failed  when 
the  trying  days  came.  The  zest  and  glow  of  the 
early  dawn  sent  these  movements  forward  for  a 
little  while;  but  when  the  heat  of  the  noon  day, 
with  all  the  accompanying  forces,  set  in  against 
these  movements,  they  either  gave  up  entirely  or 
so  modified  their  early  appearance  as  to  become 
practically  one  with  the  forces  of  the  enemy — they 
either  surrendered  outright  or  so  compromised 
with  the  world  as  to  lose  their  virility  as  a  power 
for  God,  and  in  either  case  utterly  failed.  Along 
the  trail  of  such  forces  history  reveals  at  times 
a  consuming  zeal  and  poignant  sacrifice  worthy  of 
a  better  cause.  Some  of  the  leaders  have  shown 
motives  of  the  most  commendable  kind.  They  have 
exhibited  all  the  cruder  elements  of  success,  but 
they  have  lacked  the  main  thing — the  unchanging 
truth  on  which  we  must  lay  our  foundation,  and 
for  which  we  will  manifest  our  zeal  and  make  our 
sacrifice — not  in  vain;  and  then  the  results  will  be 
more  enduring  than  the  hills,  or  the  stars  that 
give  forth  their  light  night  by  night. 

I.    The  Jews  have  failed  as  a  Missionary 
Propaganda. 

Their  great  prophets  of  political,  social,  and  re- 
ligious leaders  during  their  long  checkered  career 


140     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

have  been  truly  missionary.  In  their  best  days  they 
have  always  thought  of  Jehovah  as  the  God  of  all 
the  earth — "  no  other  Gods  beside  Him."  He  will 
subdue  His  enemies,  His  goodness  and  righteous- 
ness covering  the  earth  as  the  waters  do  the  sea, 
and  ruling  from  the  River  to  the  ends  of  the  earth. 
These  splendid  religious  leaders  with  spiritual  in- 
sight into  God's  plans  have  always  looked  forward 
to  the  Golden  Age  when  war  would  cease;  peace 
be  supreme,  justice  and  love  would  prevail  com- 
pletely in  all  the  walks  of  life,  oppression  would 
be  no  more,  sin  would  be  either  exterminated  or 
under  control,  the  throne  in  the  heavens  would 
be  in  every  man's  heart,  all  would  know  and  serve 
their  Creator.  From  the  time  of  the  Promise  given 
Abraham  until  prophecy  closed,  these  men  at  dif- 
ferent times  and  under  varied  circumstances  held 
out  these  benign  truths  as  the  blessed  and  eternal 
Hope  of  Israel  for  which  they  lived  and  died. 

With  all  the  promises  and  the  efforts  of  her  great 
spiritual  leaders,  who  were  men  of  God,  Israel,  as 
a  whole,  was  not  especially  missionary.  The  high 
ideals  of  her  better  days,  when  visions  were  clear 
and  hopes  were  bright,  had  passed  away  before 
Christ  came.  By  far  the  majority  rejected  the 
Messiah — their  hearts  were  so  blinded  that  they 
could  not  understand  what  they  read  daily  in  the 
synagogue.  Even  those  who  did  accept  him  were 
more  zealous  for  the  tradition  of  the  fathers  than 
to  extend  the  stakes.    For  years  those  who  sought 


MISSION  MOVEMENTS  THAT  FAILED     141 

to  infuse  the  spirit  of  world-wide  missions  were 
persecuted  severely  for  breaking  away  from  the 
Law  of  Moses  and  defiling  themselves  with  the 
dogs  of  the  uncircumcision.  However,  some  Jews, 
who  rejected  Christ,  were  still,  in  a  way,  mission- 
ary, seeking  to  fulfil  their  mission  to  the  world — 
giving  to  all  men  the  pure  monotheism;  yet  they 
have  failed  as  a  missionary  force. 

Their  efiforts  to  spread  the  truths  of  Jehovah  in 
China,  as  given  by  Dr.  W.  A.  P.  Martin,  President 
of  Tung-wen  College  at  Peking,  has  a  pathetic  his- 
tory. They  reached  China  in  the  3rd  century  and 
settled  in  different  parts  of  the  empire.  They  were 
fairly  numerous  as  found  from  the  national  records, 
and  the  fact  that  they  were  mentioned  several  times 
in  Chinese  history.  Father  Ricci  claimed  to  have 
discovered  a  synagogue  built  in  1183.  D^-  Martin 
visited  the  centre  of  the  Jewish  colony  at  Kaifengfu 
in  1866.  He  found  a  monument  giving  the  religion 
of  the  Jews, — Adam,  their  ancestor;  Abraham,  their 
founder;  and  Moses,  their  law-giver.  All  who  fol- 
low their  religion  know  all  wisdom,  and  avoid  the 
commission  of  vice. 

He  tells  of  one  of  their  number  who  showed  him 
the  ruins  of  their  last  synagogue,  and  Dr.  Martin 
remarks :  "  There  on  that  melancholy  spot  where  the 
very  foundations  of  the  synagogue  had  been  torn 
from  the  ground,  and  there  no  longer  remained  one 
stone  upon  another,  they  confessed  with  shame  and 
grief  that  their  holy  and  beautiful  house  had  been 


142     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

demolished  with  their  own  hands.  There  was  no 
one  able  to  teach  them,  no  occasion  to  gather  to- 
gether, and  they  tore  the  stones  and  timbers  away 
and  sold  them  to  get  the  necessary  things  of  life 
for  their  bodies. 

"  At  the  margin  of  a  near-by  lake  stands  a  rock 
so  peculiar  and  solitary  that  it  is  called  *  the  Little 
Orphan.'  The  adjacent  shore  is  low  and  level,  and 
its  kindred  rocks  are  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
lake  where  *  The  Orphan  Rock  '  seems  to  have  been 
torn  away  by  some  violent  convulsion  and  planted 
immovable  in  the  bosom  of  the  waters.  Such  ap- 
peared to  me  that  fragment  of  the  Israelitish  nation. 
A  rock  rent  from  the  side  of  Mount  Zion  by  some 
national  catastrophe  and  projected  into  the  central 
plain  of  China  it  has  stood  there  while  the  centuries 
rolled  by,  sublime  in  its  antiquity  and  solitude.  It 
is  now  on  the  verge  of  being  swallowed  up  by  the 
flood  of  paganism,  and  the  spectacle  is  a  mournful 
one." 

The  Jews  lost  their  force  as  a  religious  movement, 
lost  their  identity,  not  because  of  persecution,  not 
because  of  any  barriers  without,  but  because  the 
suffering  Christ  was  absent.  The  Cross  that  gives 
life  and  abiding  growth  to  His  message  was  not 
with  them,  hence  they  were  doomed  to  disintegra- 
tion, slowly  but  surely.  Pure  monotheism  was 
crushed  out  by  paganism  because  they  rejected  God's 
only  method  for  men's  redemption,  the  Cross  of 
Christ  which  is  the  wisdom  and  the  power  of  God. 


MISSION  MOVEMENTS  THAT  FAILED     143 

Be  their  motives  whatever  they  might  have  been  in 
going  to  China,  their  lives  ever  so  beautiful  and  zeal- 
ous, while  there  they  could  not  permanently  resist 
the  swelling  tides  of  heathenism  without  the  Cross. 

2.    The  Nestorians  also  Failed  as  Missionary 
Propaganda. 

The  Nestorians  went  to  China  in  the  name  of 
Christ  and  taught  much  about  Him.  They  preached 
about  God  the  Father  and  His  Son  Jesus  Christ, 
giving  an  account  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount, 
His  miracles  and  work  of  healing  and  going  about 
doing  good.  They  reached  China  (land  of  Sinim) 
A.D.  505.  They  began  their  missionary  work 
under  the  most  favourable  conditions,  and  it  seems 
that  their  efforts  made  great  headway  at  first.  The 
ancient  records  of  China  tell  of  numerous  churches, 
and  of  the  favour  of  the  great  emperor,  Ti  Tsung,  in 
635.  But  however  zealous  they  were  at  first  and 
outwardly  successful,  they  utterly  failed,  and  were 
finally  submerged  in  the  sea  of  Chinese  supersti- 
tion and  idolatry.  The  early  remains  of  their  work 
is  a  quaint  tablet  discovered  in  1625  at  Hsi  An  Fu, 
the  capital  of  Shen  Si  province,  on  which  is  inscribed 
an  outline  of  their  mission  work  from  630  to  781. 
"  This  is  the  only  trace  of  what  must  have  been  an 
interesting,  and  perhaps  a  thrilling  missionary  enter- 
prise." 

The  tablet  gives  a  summary  of  their  teaching. 
What  they  taught  was  good,  and  must  have  shown 


144      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

in  those  days  with  great  splendour  in  contrast  with 
the  crude  polytheism  of  China.  By  reason  of  their 
superior  scholarship  they  soon  won  the  favour  of 
the  Court,  being  commended  by  one  of  China's 
most  famous  emperors.  They  won  many  converts 
in  their  early  days.  The  heathen  were  quick  to 
flock  to  this  new  religion  with  its  learned  mission- 
aries so  high  in  favour  with  the  kings.  It  seems 
that  the  Nestorian  efforts  sunk  speedily  into  oblivion 
after  a  century  or  so  of  marvellous  growth,  doomed 
to  utter  failure  in  a  land  grievously  in  need  of 
Christianity.  They  also  failed  because  they  had  no 
vital  message  about  the  Cross.  They  taught  that 
Christ  was  not  only  a  good  man,  but  the  Son  of 
God.  They  did  not  deny  His  supernatural  powder 
as  a  teacher  and  a  healer  of  man's  diseases.  Jesus 
taught  of  God,  He  came  from  God  and  was  the 
world^s  Saviour.  They  accepted  these  things,  but 
they  had  no  message  of  the  Cross.  Their  teaching 
was  about  Christ,  but  Crossless.  They  failed  be- 
cause the  core  of  the  Gospel  was  left  out,  hence  they 
lacked  the  power  and  zeal  that  could  overcome  idol- 
atry and  plant  Christianity  permanently  on  heathen 
soil.  In  other  lands  where  pagan  religions  were  not 
so  strongly  organized,  they  might  have  continued 
much  longer  as  a  society  em-phasizing  the  beauty 
and  grandeur  of  Christ's  life,  and  human  culture, 
but  this  was  not  possible  in  China  without  a  life 
based  on  the  realities  of  the  Cross. 


MISSION  MOVEMENTS  THAT  FAILED     145 

5.    The  Early  Missionary  Efforts  of  the  Catholics 
in  the  Orient. 

John  de  Corvino  reached  Peking  in  1293.  He, 
too,  at  first  received  most  favourable  attention,  was 
employed  as  a  teacher  in  the  Royal  family,  and 
given  all  due  consideration  as  the  wise  teacher  of 
the  Western  religion.  He  was  a  mighty  scholar  for 
his  day,  and  showed  splendid  zeal  and  devotion  for 
his  Church.  Many  accepted  his  teaching,  some  from 
the  families  of  the  nobles  and  it  looked  for  awhile 
that  the  Chinese  would  enter  the  Catholic  church  by 
the  millions,  and  possibly  the  whole  land  would  be- 
come Roman  Catholics.  In  the  course  of  time  many 
priests  came.  The  favours  they  received  from  the 
Court  encouraged  them  to  attempt  to  direct  the 
affairs  of  the  palace  in  the  interest  of  their  converts. 
Persecution  was  started  by  the  rulers  of  the  nation 
to  save  their  power,  it  seems.  These  rulers  saw  un- 
less the  priests  were  checked  in  their  movements, 
the  very  throne  would  need  to  bow  to  their  wishes; 
and  the  best  thing  for  them  to  do  was  to  drive  the 
foreign  intruders  from  the  country  and  kill  their 
converts.  Bitter  and  persistent  persecution  fol- 
lowed, almost  exterminating  the  so-called  Chris- 
tians of  those  days.  Catholics  lost  their  first  great 
opportunity  in  China,  and  the  entire  Orient  as  well, 
because  they  not  only  failed  to  give  the  people  Chris- 
tianity in  its  pristine  purity,  but  they  meddled 
with   the   affairs   wholly   without   their   sphere    as 


146     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

teachers  of  Christ.  They  failed  in  their  spiritual 
function. 

Francis  Xavier  and  men  of  his  fiery  zeal  came 
later  baptizing  thousands  in  India,  Japan,  and  China. 
These  men  were  willing  to  make  any  sacrifice,  loved 
not  their  own  lives,  gave  up  all  and  hazarded  all  for 
their  Church's  sake,  pressing  forward  over  all  difB- 
culties.  In  these  things  there  is  much  to  commend. 
Many  of  them  gladly  gave  their  lives  for  the  work 
they  attempted  to  do,  and  died  with  the  hope  that 
their  efforts  would  give  courage  and  inspire  zeal 
in  others  who  would  follow  and  reap  where  they 
had  sown.  These  early  efforts  failed,  most  of  them 
completely.  They  all  utterly  failed  in  planting  pure 
and  vigorous  Christianity  in  the  Orient.  In  some 
cases  the  priests  were  killed  and  their  converts  were 
forced  to  recant  or  suffer  a  like  fate.  Where  they 
were  not  exterminated,  as  a  rule,  they  adjusted 
themselves  so  fully  to  the  heathen  life  and  teaching 
that  they  lost  their  identity  as  a  Christian  force. 
In  compromising  with  the  heathen  religions  they 
often  changed  the  names  of  the  heathen  festivals 
and  gods  to  Christian  ones,  but  permitted  the  old 
heathen  methods  and  life  to  continue.  Whether 
they  were  exterminated  by  force  or  yielded  to  the 
press  of  the  compromising  forces  the  result  was 
alike  fatal. 

These  early  Catholic  movements  with  their  com- 
mendable zeal  and  enthusiasm  made  no  great  last- 
ing impression  on  the  nations  of  the  Orient.    They 


MISSION  MOVEMENTS  THAT  FAILED     14T 

went  as  brave  soldiers  of  the  "  all  powerful  See  of 
Rome,"  loyal  sons  of  the  then  dominant  Church 
with  consecration  and  devotion  that  held  them  to 
their  work  till  death  came.  Their  message  was  not 
Crossless.  No,  the  crucifix  was  the  magic  wand  of 
their  message.  They  were  ardent  believers  in  the 
Cross  and  the  blood  and  baptism  and  all  the  sacra- 
ments, manifested  much  fervour  for  the  forms  of 
their  faith,  held  forth  "  sacred  emblems  "  with  holy 
names,  and  sought  by  these  things  to  win  the  masses 
to  the  Church.  They  failed  because  they  trans- 
formed the  simple  ordinances  of  Christianity,  which 
have  their  life  and  worth  in  the  realities  of  the 
Cross,  into  mere  magic  as  crude  in  many  cases  as 
the  magic  rites  of  paganism.  "  The  sacred  emblems 
and  holy  sacraments  "  performed  would  bring  ever- 
lasting life  to  the  worst  heathen.  In  this  enlightened 
country  of  ours  their  most  learned  representative, 
James  Cardinal  Gibbons  says  in  "  The  Faith  of 
Our  Fathers,"  p.  243 :  "  By  means  of  religious  em- 
blems St.  Francis  Xavier  effected  many  conversions 
in  India;  and  by  the  same  means  Father  De  Smet 
made  known  the  Gospel  to  the  savages  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains."  Many  of  these  priests,  famous  for  their 
zeal  and  converts  (thought  to  be)  won,  like  Francis 
Xavier,  never  learned  the  vernacular  of  the  people, 
always  spoke  through  heathen  interpreters,  baptiz- 
ing thousands  into  "  the  Holy  Catholic  Church  " 
without  any  reference  to  the  changed  life.  The  mere 
ordinance  had  its  holy  converting  functions  with  all 


148      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

who  would  submit  to  it.  This  crude  method,  which 
completely  destroyed  the  meaning  of  the  Cross, 
could  not  give  the  power  and  life  necessary  to  over- 
come the  errors  ^nd  superstition  of  the  heathen. 
Their  wonderful  zeal  and  passion  for  the  propaga- 
tion of  the  sacraments  could  not  prevent  their  work 
from  collapsing.  It  was  void  of  the  vital  power  of 
the  life  based  on  right  views  of  the  Cross.  Truth 
is  all  powerful,  and  no  effort  with  missionaries  will 
amend  for  its  absence.  Zeal  and  great  love  and  pas- 
sion for  one's  work  will  do  much  to  keep  it  going; 
but  the  days  of  struggle  and  testing  will  surely 
come  when  only  the  truth  will  stand.  All  else  will 
go  as  hay  and  stubble.  One  of  the  simplest  and  best 
ways  of  testing  a  missionary's  work  is  to  see  what 
his  converts  believe.  "  Wisdom  is  justified  by  all 
her  children."  James  Cardinal  Gibbons  in  "  The 
Faith  of  our  Fathers,"  p.  461,  gives  the  following 
significant  account  of  the  confession  of  a  Japanese 
convert,  called  Peter :  "  Many  years  after  Francis 
Xavier's  work  was  done  in  Japan  when  a  French 
squadron  was  permitted  to  enter  the  Japanese  ports, 
a  native  Christian,  named  Peter,  put  the  faith  of 
the  priests  on  board  to  the  test  by  asking  three 
questions :  *  Are  you  followers  of  the  great  Father 
in  Rome?  Do  you  honour  Mary  the  blessed  Vir- 
gin ?  Have  you  wives  ? '  When  the  priests  satis- 
fied Peter  on  these  points,  he  and  his  companions 
fell  at  the  feet  of  the  missionaries  exclaiming  with 
delight :    *  Thanks,  thanks,  they  are  virgins  and  true 


MISSION  MOVEMENTS  THAT  FAILED     149 

disciples  of  our  Apostle  Francis.'  "  The  question 
of  Jesus'  redemptive  work,  dying  for  the  world's 
sins,  one  God,  etc.,  did  not  enter  into  the  test  of 
true  discipleship.  The  test  was  based  wholly  on 
their  allegiance  to  Rome,  the  essence  of  the  Gospel 
was  entirely  absent. 

The  perversion  of  the  life  giving  message  of  the 
Cross  is  quite  as  harmful  in  establishing  firmly 
Christianity  in  all  the  world  as  blatant  errors.  The 
former  course  is  far  more  insidious  and  very  much 
more  dangerous.  These  early  Catholic  efforts  failed 
because  they  perverted  the  real  meaning  of  the 
Cross,  hence  lost  their  first  opportunities.  They 
reached  the  Eastern  lands  many  centuries  before  the 
age  of  modern  missions  when  they  had  much  to 
encourage  them  in  preaching  the  simple  doctrines 
of  our  Master;  but  in  failing  to  do  this  they  failed 
entirely  as  a  permanent  force. 

4,    Christian  Efforts  of  Former  Ages. 

All  Christian  efforts  that  have  not  been  true  to 
the  Cross  have  failed,  where  sufficient  time  has  been 
given  to  make  the  test.  To  call  an  error  Protestant- 
ism or  Apostolic  or  Christianity  of  the  Fathers  in 
no  way  changes  the  situation.  Earthly  thrones  and 
advancing  civilization  may  get  behind  an  error  or 
perversion  of  the  truth  and  assure  it  longer  life, 
but  only  that  which  is  in  deed  and  in  truth  true  to 
the  core  of  the  Gospel  will  win  along  right  and  per- 
manent lines.     In  the  early  centuries  the  churches 


150      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

started  well,  but  made  a  signal  failure,  after  a  few 
centuries  of  glorious  conquest,  in  preserving  and 
propagating  the  Christianity  of  our  Saviour. 

The  history  of  these  early  churches  shows  how 
quietly  error  crept  in  after  they  commenced  their 
march  away  from  the  perfect  Model.  In  their  early 
days  when  the  Lord's  earthly  ministry  was  fresh  in 
their  memories,  they  remained  fairly  true  to  the  es- 
sential realities  of  the  Cross;  but  as  persecution 
ceased,  the  conflict  with  the  world  less  intense,  they 
made  friends  with  the  world,  compromising  the 
Gospel  to  suit  the  heathen  mould  of  life  and  thought. 
All  the  malignant  errors  that  soon  appeared  can  be 
traced  invariably  to  wrong  or  inadequate  views  of 
the  Lord's  death. 

a.  The  leaders  in  their  desire  to  force  all  to  con- 
form to  the  mandates  of  the  Church,  which  was  then 
backed  by  the  kings,  they  did  not  allow  the  indi- 
vidual the  privilege  of  following  God — permitting 
God's  will  to  be  supreme  in  his  heart. 

h.  In  seeking  to  force  all  to  observe  certain 
forms,  they  made  it  exceedingly  difficult — and  after- 
wards impossible — to  follow  the  law  of  God's  king- 
dom in  unselfishly  giving  our  lives  in  service  to 
others. 

c.  In  unduly  emphasizing  the  ordinances  and 
sacraments  and  deeds  of  men  they  failed  to  value 
aright  the  blessings  that  are  freely  offered  to  all  men 
by  reason  of  the  death  of  our  Lord.  They  mini- 
mized the  Cross  as  they  cornrnenced  to  magnify  un- 


MISSION  MOVEMENTS  THAT  FAILED     151 

lawfully  the  deeds  of  men.  When  the  doctrine  of 
the  Cross  in  its  purity  was  clouded  by  false  teach- 
ing and  wrong  emphasis,  heresies  and  lifeless  forms 
multiplied  rapidly.  Streams  of  foreign  and  life 
destroying  elements  poured  into  the  churches  from 
papan  religions  and  pagan  philosophies,  and  this 
destroyed  the  power  and  life  of  true  Christianity. 

5.    Modern  Missions  also  have  lessons  of  warning. 

Any  effort  even  in  these  days  will  eventually  fail 
if  it  does  not  duly  appreciate  the  place  and  value  of 
the  Cross  in  advancing  Christianity. 

Missionaries  must  be  imbued  with  the  spirit  of 
the  Cross  in  their  life  and  teaching  or  they  will 
fail  utterly  in  their  work.  They  might  continue 
as  teachers  of  Western  civilization  and  do  some 
good  disseminating  knowledge;  but  as  real  helpers 
to  the  truth  that  is  above  all,  they  will  be  of  no 
permanent  help.  This  is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that 
even  missionary  doctors  with  their  unparalleled  op- 
portunities to  reach  all  classes  must  give  themselves 
largely  to  the  saving  of  souls,  or  they  are  in  danger 
of  drifting  into  the  material  lines  of  their  calling 
and  pass  out  of  the  spiritual  phase  that  should  dom- 
inate all  our  work.  Educators,  whose  work  is  purely 
literary,  are  in  constant  danger  of  becoming  power- 
less as  spiritual  leaders  because  they  fail  to  give 
the  Cross  first  place  in  all  their  methods  of  work. 

Missionaries,  who  are  consumed  with  the  passion 


152      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

of  the  Lord  for  the  lost  world,  be  their  special  work 
educational,  medical,  or  evangelistic,  will  find  bound- 
less joy  in  watching  the  incomparable  truths  of  the 
Gospel  conquer  all  forms  of  error  and  purify  in  a 
marvellously  short  time  heathen  society  in  its  worst 
forms  and  individuals  in  the  lowest  condition  of 
moral  life.  Men,  who  seek  to  lift  the  non-Chris- 
tian world  by  any  method  that  leaves  out  or  atten- 
uates the  Cross,  will  find  their  task  a  hopeless  one. 
They  will  return  to  the  home  land  with  an  insipid 
message  about  their  efforts  in  the  lands  of  heathen 
darkness.  However,  those  who  seek  with  all  their 
God-given  powers,  to  set  forth  Christ  and  Him  cru- 
cified, be  their  line  of  work  whatever  it  may,  will 
find  so  much  to  encourage  them  that  they  will  be 
led  to  consecrate  their  all  to  the  conflict  whereunto 
they  are  sent.  Such  a  privilege  will  demand  the 
best  of  any  life,  and  they  will  not  suffer  their  lives 
to  fail  by  leaving  the  one  source  of  all  needed  power 
to  make  success  possible. 


XII 
THE  EARLY  CHRISTIAN  ERA 

THE  Gospel,  as  given  by  Christ  and  interpreted 
by  His  apostles  through  the  power  and  guid- 
ance of  the  Holy  Spirit,  is  a  true  model  for 
us  in  these  days.  However,  it  is  quite  necessary  to 
discriminate  between  those  things  of  local  bearing 
only  and  those  given  once  for  all  time.  This  must 
be  done  before  the  model  is  a  safe  one  for  all  time. 
It  is  also  important  to  seek  carefully  for  God's  plans 
of  the  warfare.  Where  specific  teaching  is  given  as 
to  the  things  to  emphasize  and  the  methods  to  use  in 
so  doing,  we  can  observe  these  with  all  confidence 
of  success,  and  reject  them  at  our  peril. 

It  is  of  paramount  importance  to  remember  we 
refer  in  the  above  only  to  God's  revelation  as  given 
to  us  in  His  Son  and  those  moved  on  by  the  Holy 
Ghost  to  impart  His  will  to  men.  When  we  pass 
beyond  the  sphere  of  this  revelation,  we  find  our- 
selves on  uncertain  ground.  Paul  saw  much'  in  the 
churches  to  condemn  in  his  day  and  he  saw  even 
greater  evils  ahead.  Peter,  James,  Jude,  and  John 
understood  the  imperfection  of  the  early  Christians. 
The  errors  that  foreshadowed  the  long  weary  night 

153 


154     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

of  the  dark  ages  were  seen  in  the  early  churches. 
They  had  their  incipiency  and  began  development 
at  a  surprisingly  short  time  after  the  Master  ''  as- 
cended on  high."  Therefore,  in  considering  the 
early  Christian  era,  we  do  not  mean  to  say  that 
we  think  the  churches  were  perfect  in  those  days, 
or  that  we  can  take  them  as  our  guides  in  all  things ; 
but  we  do  insist  that  they  were  a  mighty  mission- 
ary force  at  first.  History  has  not,  as  yet,  a  par- 
allel to  these  early  efforts  in  missionary  propaganda. 
We  can  learn  from  their  successes.  These  followers 
of  our  Lord  were  dominated,  yea  consumed,  by  a 
force  that  surmounted  all  difficulties  and  set  up  the 
ensign  of  the  Cross  at  all  hazards.  After  making 
all  allowance  for  the  condition  of  the  pagan  world 
and  the  diffusion  of  monotheism  by  the  Jews,  never- 
theless the  triumphs  of  these  men  in  supplanting 
heathen  religions  and  their  accompanying  civiliza- 
tions with  Christianity  remain  one  of  the  greatest, 
if  not  the  greatest,  marvel  of  history.  Wherein  do 
we  find  their  conquering  power? 

Most  of  the  Apostles  were  so  bent  on  preserving 
the  ceremonies  of  the  Law  in  their  efforts  to  estab- 
lish Christianity,  they  were  not  especially  mission- 
ary. Though  the  Master  sought  again  and  again  to 
teach  them,  new  wine  could  not  be  put  in  old  hard- 
ened skins — it  could  not  be  thus  bound — yet  they 
were  dull  of  understanding.  Even  Peter,  who  had 
been  favoured  with  a  house-top  vision,  could  be  eas- 
ily led  off  by  the  Judaizing  spirit  which  meant  Chris- 


THE  EARLY  CHRISTIAN  ERA         155 

tianity  was  ever  to  remain  a  sect  for  a  favoured 
few.  We  do  see  them  leaving  Jerusalem  after  se- 
vere persecution,  going  everywhere  preaching  the 
word  of  life,  but  only  a  few  found  it  their  duty  to 
manifest  His  saving  power  unto  the  Gentiles.  We 
also  see  the  restored  church  at  Jerusalem,  composed 
of  the  select  ones  of  His  kingdom,  after  Paul  and 
Barnabas  had  such  wonderful  success  among  the 
Gentiles,  sitting  in  council  to  decide  how  the  Gen- 
tiles are  to  be  permitted  to  partake  of  the  blessings 
of  Christianity.  That  dictatorial  assembly,  though 
doubtless  reluctantly,  did  decide  to  give  Paul  the 
right  hand  of  fellowship  if  he  would  stay  on  his  own 
ground — among  the  Gentiles. 

The  advancement  of  these  first  disciples  beyond 
the  ordinary  Jew  of  their  day  was  due  to  their  spe- 
cial knowledge  of  the  Cross.  The  death  of  Christ 
confirmed  by  the  resurrection,  as  the  Father's  plan 
for  their  redemption,  marked  an  epoch  of  far-reach- 
ing importance  in  their  lives.  Before  His  death 
they  believed  He  was  the  Son  of  God  and  the  Son 
of  man.  He  alone  hath  the  words  of  eternal  life, 
the  great  Teacher  sent  from  God,  the  wonderful 
miracle  worker  with  all  power  over  the  evil  spirits, 
the  Messiah  of  Scripture,  and  the  holy  One  of  God ; 
yet  they  were  weak,  vacillating,  complaining,  en- 
vious men.  shirking  persecution,  and  fearing  the  of- 
ficials. They  lacked  a  consuming  passion  based  on 
the  certainties  of  Divine  truth  more  dear  to  them 


156     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

than  all  else.  They  could  not  understand  the  mys- 
teries of  His  Atoning  work.  The  idea  was  repul- 
sive to  them,  and  they  were  far  from  entering  into 
such  a  life  unconditionally.  Though  their  motives 
were  exalted  at  times,  yet  these  better  motives  did 
not  control  them  fully.  This  condition  prevailed 
before  the  Cross-experience. 

After  the  Master  was  "  lifted  up,"  the  scene  is 
all  changed.  They  are  men  moved  by  an  entirely 
different  spirit.  Whereas  before  they  were  weak- 
lings ready  to  run  at  the  first  signs  of  danger,  and 
had  no  heart  for  the  rugged  life  of  suffering;  yet 
after  the  Cross  had  been  experienced,  they  were 
as  bold  as  a  lion,  fearing  neither  the  officials  nor 
the  populace.  They  found  real  joy  in  suffering  for 
Him,  and  ever  sought  to  imitate  His  example.  His 
passion  for  the  lost  somewhat  became  theirs.  They 
were  led  on  by  a  consuming  zeal  to  do  His  will  and 
live  His  life.  Beyond  all  doubt  the  Cross  was  the 
crisis  in  their  lives  and  made  them  the  daring  con- 
quering army  that  they  became.  They  lacked  extent 
of  vision  for  their  scope  of  service,  yet  their  lives 
were  intense,  labouring  under  a  deep  sense  of  re- 
sponsibility to  the  world  in  view  of  the  Gospel  which 
had  been  committed  unto  them.  They  believed 
something  for  which  they  were  willing  to  labour 
and  die  if  necessary,  praying  for  those  who  stoned 
them  to  death.  One  cannot  read  about  the  conflict 
of  these  men  without  seeing  that  they  were  in- 
fluenced mightily  by  the   suffering  of   Christ   for 


THE  EARLY  CHRISTIAN  ERA         157 

their  sins,  and  they  were  to  be  witnesses  to  this 
fact.  The  Cross  was  the  basis  of  their  courage 
and  hope. 

Though  the  Apostles  as  a  whole  had  for  their 
battle  cry,  **  Christ  died  for  their  sins,"  however, 
Paul  was  the  one  great  leader  in  extending  the 
Gospel  beyond  the  narrow  bounds  of  Palestine.  His 
visions  were  broadened  to  include  all  the  world  in 
his  parish.  He  showed  the  same  zeal — and  even 
greater — for  the  Gentiles  that  the  others  had  for 
their  brethren  according  to  the  flesh.  He  made  no 
difference  as  to  classes  or  countries — all  were  lost 
and  they  needed  the  Gospel,  and  it  was  his  duty  to 
give  it  to  them.  Paul  rescued  Christianity  from  the 
narrow  sectarian  view  to  embrace  all  men.  With 
him  Christianity  alone  had  the  power  to  meet  the 
needs  of  all.  What  was  the  message  that  sent  him 
forth  into  heathen  lands  with  such  magnificent 
courage  and  devotion? 

He  gave  as  the  essence  of  his  message  which  he 
received  not  of  men  or  from  men,  but  of  God: 
"  How  Christ  died  for  their  sins  according  to  the 
Scriptures,  was  buried,  and  that  He  rose  again  the 
third  day  according  to  the  Scriptures "  ( i  Cor. 
15. 3f.).  He  states  in  Rom.  1.14  that  he  is  debtor 
to  all  men  because  of  what  Christ  had  done  for  him. 
This  was  the  basis  of  his  missionary  motives.  The 
truth  which  held  him  and  forced  him  forward  in 
his  work  was  the  love  of  Christ  seen  in  His  death 
for  all   (2  Cor.  5.i4f.).     The  Cross  was  his  one 


158     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

message  to  the  heathen  world.  He  knew  and 
preached  nothing  else  to  the  Corinthians,  and  would 
have  their  faith  founded  on  Christ  and  Him  cruci- 
fied (i  Cor.  2. if.).  Before  the  eyes  of  the  Gala- 
tians  was  Christ  set  forth  crucified  (Gal.  3.1).  He 
lived  not  his  own  life,  but  the  life  of  Jesus  Christ 
who  loved  him  and  gave  Himself  for  him  (Gal. 
2.20).  He  had  no  hope  in  the  wisdom  and  devices 
of  men  to  change  the  heathen  heart  and  life,  to  do 
this  he  looked  alone  to  the  power  of  the  Cross  of 
Jesus  Christ. 

The  Cross  of  our  Lord  was  certainly  Paul's  one 
theme,  and  he  depended  on  its  proclamation,  lived 
out  in  his  life  (Phil.  1.29  and  3.10)  for  the  mar- 
vellous results  that  accompanied  his  ministry  among 
the  Gentiles.  For  him  to  live  was  Christ,  and  he 
died  daily,  bearing  the  marks  of  his  Master  wher- 
ever he  went.  His  ministry  has  not  a  parallel  in  the 
non-Christian  lands  in  its  fruitfulness,  and  again 
he  has  not  a  parallel  in  setting  forth  Christ  and  Him 
crucified  in  words  and  in  life.  It  seems,  just  in 
proportion  as  he  was  able  to  manifest  the  Cross  of 
Christ  with  its  full  meaning  in  his  message  and  life 
in  the  non-Christian  world  was  his  work  effective — 
was  he  blessed  of  Him  who  had  called  him  into  the 
warfare  and  furnished  him  his  conquering  theme 
of  redemption  for  all  the  people.  Just  as  Paul  res- 
cued Christianity  from  its  sectarian  limitations,  and 
gave  it  world  scope  and  power  by  making  the  sacri- 
fice of  Christ  manifest  the  love  and  wisdom  of  God 


THE  EARLY  CHRISTIAN  ERA         159 

in  providing  through  His  boundless  grace  redemp- 
tion for  all  peoples  and  classes,  he  became  an 
example  worthy  of  our  imitation  in  these  days.  We 
can  still  follow  him  as  he  followed  Christ  in  em- 
phasizing the  one  source  of  his  power,  and  then  we 
will  conquer  in  our  mission  work,  being  co-labourers 
with  Christ  in  bringing  to  His  fold  peoples  of  every 
nation :  for  we  are  persuaded  there  are  many  in 
every  heathen  land,  who  know  not  of  the  Lord's  re- 
demptive work,  waiting  to  be  brought  into  His  fel- 
lowship. 

After  we  leave  the  Apostles  it  behooves  us  to  be 
more  discriminating  in  our  search  for  the  one  power 
that  made  the  early  Christians  such  a  missionary 
force.  The  "  Church  Fathers  "  cannot  be  taken  as 
perfect  models  in  teaching  or  life,  yet  they  were  a 
mighty  force  as  a  missionary  propaganda.  We 
want  to  know  the  source  of  this  power  that  not  only 
kept  the  early  flames  burning,  but  caused  them  to 
spread  with  surprising  rapidity.  Passing  their 
faults  and  tendency  to  deviate  from  the  original 
type  of  Christianity  and  thus  permit  all  kinds  of 
heresies  to  block  the  way  of  final  conquest,  it  is 
profitable  to  seek  for  the  source  of  the  success  that 
did  attend  their  mission  efforts. 

These  early  leaders  did  not  spend  much  time  on 
the  theories  of  the  Cross.  Other  questions  took 
priority  over  the  Cross  in  the  intense  struggles  for 
existence.  They  accepted  the  Scriptural  statements, 
believed  them  implicitly,  and  asked  no  rationale  for 


160     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

the  same.  They  gloried  in  the  triumphs  of  the 
Cross  on  earth  and  in  heaven,  were  deeply  con- 
cerned about  living  the  Cross-life,  and  meeting  the 
formidable  enemies  on  every  side  that  sought  to 
exterminate  them.  They  unequivocally  believed 
something,  had  a  reason  for  this  belief  even  though 
they  did  not  seek  to  give  an  elaborate  discussion 
of  the  same.  The  rationale  of  the  Cross  did  not 
concern  them  so  much  as  what  it  brought  to  them 
and  all  the  world,  and  how  they  could  successfully 
reveal  its  blessing  to  others.  However,  we  can 
gather  from  a  number  of  expressions,  incidently 
flung  out  to  the  world  with  all  their  inner  heart 
meanings,  most  commonly  given  forth  in  their 
battles  with  the  enemies,  which  show  that  they  be- 
lieved in  the  Cross  somewhat,  at  least,  as  taught  in 
God's  Word. 

Polycarp  called  Isaiah's  prophecy  concerning  the 
vicarious  suffering  of  Christ  (Is.  53)  "The  Golden 
Passional."  Ignatius  of  Antioch  said :  "  Our  sin 
was  nailed  on  the  Cross  with  Christ,"  or  in  nailing 
Christ  to  the  Cross  was  our  sin  nailed  also.  The 
Golden  mouthed  Chrysostom,  probably  the  greatest 
foreign  missionary  in  his  preaching  and  example  of 
all  the  fathers,  shows  us  what  he  regarded  as  the 
main  force  in  the  foreign  missionary's  message,  and 
what  influenced  his  own  life  most  in  service  for  his 
Lord :  "  Could  thou  raise  the  dead,  thou  would  not 
have  the  influence  over  the  heathen  as  the  man  who 
is  full  of  the  Christian  spirit  and  life.    They  stare 


THE  EARLY  CHRISTIAN  ERA         161 

at  the  miracle  while  the  life  penetrates  heart  and 
soul.  Thou  desirest  to  heal  and  help — nothing  wins 
with  such  power  as  love."  In  preaching  to  the 
Goths  he  often  spoke  to  them  in  their  vernacular 
explaining  the  crucifixion  saying :  "  O  the  Cross,  the 
Cross  of  Christ !  It  has  the  same  power  now  it  had 
four  hundred  years  ago.  With  the  Aposdes  let  us 
rejoice  in  it.  O  the  glory  of  suffering!  O  the 
splendour  of  the  Cross!  "  This  eloquent  messenger 
of  the  world's  Saviour  sought  to  win  all  classes, 
counted  not  his  life  dear  unto  himself,  dying  an 
exile,  amid  the  most  trying  hardships.  He  had  been 
forced  to  live  in  privation  his  last  days  because  he 
dared  to  preach  the  liberties  and  glories  of  the  Cross, 
which  he  claimed  for  himself  as  well  as  for  all  men. 
Tertullian  referred  to  the  death  of  Christ  on  the 
Cross  as  "  the  One  hope  of  all  the  world." 

Adolf  Harnack  aptly  describes  the  source  of  early 
Christianity's  power  as  a  missionary  propaganda: 
"  The  secret  of  the  preaching  of  the  first  century 
was  its  simplicity.  It  could  be  summed  up  in  a  few 
brief  sentences,  and  understood  in  the  simple  crisis 
of  the  inner  life;  yet  it  was  so  versatile  and  rich, 
that  it  vivified  all  thought  and  stimulated  every  emo- 
tion. It  was  both  old  and  new :  it  was  alike  present 
and  future."  He  says  the  message  of  the  early 
Christians  as  to  Jesus  was :  "  He  is  the  Son  of  God 
who  came  from  heaven,  made  known  the  Father, 
died  for  sin,  rose,  sent  the  Spirit  hither,  and  from 
His  seat  at  God's  right  hand  will  return  for  the 


162     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

Judgment.  No  account  of  the  principles  underlying 
the  mission-preaching  of  Christianity  (in  the  early 
centuries)  is  accurate,  if  it  does  not  view  every- 
thing from  the  standpoint  of  this  conception:  The 
sovereignty  of  morality,  and  the  assurance  of  re- 
demption by  the  forgiveness  of  sins  based  on  the 
Cross  of  Christ.  *  The  world  is  crucified  to  me,  and 
I  to  the  world  '  came  from  the  lips  of  all  Christians, 
says  Celsus,  an  enemy  of  the  Christians.  *  Surely 
He  hath  borne  our  sicknesses  and  carried  our  sor- 
rows ;  by  His  stripes  we  are  healed.'  This  is  the  new 
truth  that  issued  from  the  Cross  of  Jesus.  It  flowed 
out,  like  a  stream  of  fresh  water,  on  the  arid  souls 
of  men  and  on  their  dry  morality.  The  morality  of 
outward  acts  and  regulations  gave  way  to  the  con- 
ception of  a  life  which  was  personal,  pure,  and 
Divine,  which  spent  itself  in  the  service  of  the  breth- 
ren, and  gave  itself  ungrudgingly  to  death.  This 
conception  was  the  new  principle  of  life.  They  re- 
ceived their  life  and  the  strength  to  live  it  from 
Christ — God  their  Saviour — whose  person,  deeds, 
and  suffering  were  man's  salvation.  Conscious  of 
this,  the  primitive  Christian  missionaries  were  ready 
to  die  daily.  And  it  was  just  this  reason  why  their 
cause  did  not  collapse." 

Our  every  investigation  of  the  history  of  Chris- 
tianity in  the  early  centuries  convinces  us  that  Har- 
nack  has  given  a  concise  and  accurate  statement  of 
what  gave  these  early  missionaries  of  Christ  their 
matchless  power.    Much  in  their  teachings  we  can- 


THE  EARLY  CHRISTIAN  ERA         163 

not  accept;  but  in  their  early  struggles  when  Chris- 
tianity was  overcoming  paganism  and  taking  root  in 
foreign  soil,  we  can  commend  the  secret  of  their 
life  and  message  which  gave  Christianity  its  ever 
conquering  power  in  its  first  great  struggle  with 
heathenism.  If  with  their  faults  and  early  heretical 
tendencies  they  accomplished  so  much  because  of 
their  relation  to  the  crucified  and  risen  Lord  ever 
real,  living  in  and  for  them,  how  much  more  ought 
we  to  accomplish  if  we  hold  to  the  simple  truths 
and  realities  of  the  Cross  in  their  purity,  and  set 
forth  His  life,  as  originally  given  to  us,  as  we  come 
in  daily  touch  with  the  world  of  sin  and  iniquity. 
Their  willingness  to  give  up  all  to  spread  the  knowl- 
edge of  Him  who  died  for  their  sins;  their  zeal  to 
manifest  this  life  from  above  to  the  heathen;  their 
joy  in  being  spent  for  the  brethren;  their  anxious- 
ness  to  witness  daily  for  Him;  their  consciousness 
of  this  life  being  a  mere  pilgrimage — their  citizen- 
ship was  in  heaven ;  their  love  and  pity  for  the  lost, 
— in  these  things  they  can  be  our  examples.  H  we 
manifest  these  pungent  qualities  of  the  Christian 
life,  yet  in  all  things  be  true  to  the  realities  of  the 
Cross  and  all  their  relationships,  we  can  perma- 
nently establish  the  Lord's  reign  from  the  river  to 
the  ends  of  the  earth.  We  live  in  an  age  far  more 
opportune  to  the  spread  of  the  truths  of  Christian- 
ity than  these  men  of  the  first  centuries.  We  need 
to  glory  in  our  privileges  and  make  much  of  our 
opportunities.     If  we  will  emphasize  the  message 


164.     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

that  made  their  work  so  effective,  in  Christianity's 
first  great  struggle  with  the  heathen  world,  and 
avoid  the  errors  that  eventually  weakened  their  good 
beginning,  our  victory  will  be  complete  and  the 
results  final.  The  early  Christian  era  gives  us  both 
an  encouragement  and  a  warning:  as  long  as  they 
were  true  to  the  Cross,  they  made  splendid  progress 
in  conquering  the  heathen  religions  and  philoso- 
phies— what  success  they  had  was  due  to  their  rela- 
tion to  the  Cross ;  but  as  soon  as  they  deviated  from 
the  life  and  message  of  the  Cross,  their  failure  com- 
menced and  eventually  became  quite  complete. 


XIII 

THE  FORERUNNERS  OF  THE 
REFORMATION 

its  soon  as  Christianity  conquered  her  perse- 
r\  cutors  in  the  early  centuries  and  was  firmly 
established  in  the  Roman  Empire,  its  life  and 
zeal  either  ceased  or  changed  emphasis.  Not  only 
persecution  subsided,  but  it  became  the  profitable 
thing  to  enter  the  church's  protecting  fold.  The 
sword  which  was  formerly  used  in  an  effort  to  ex- 
terminate the  church,  was  now  used  for  her  defence, 
and  even  for  her  extension.  Large  numbers  of  the 
heathen  tribes  flocked  to  the  protection  of  the  church 
rather  than  to  suffer  the  sword  of  the  church.  There 
soon  commenced  a  syncretism  within  the  church — 
a  willingness  to  compromise  with  the  pagan  life  and 
philosophies  of  that  day — that  went  on  until  the  life 
and  forms  of  the  Apostolic  churches  were  lost  in 
the  man-made  hierarchy;  a  body  that  retained  all  the 
holy  names  of  the  early  Christians  with  many  added, 
yet  void  of  the  power  and  life  that  always  char- 
acterize pure  Christianity.  This  hierarchy  took  per- 
manent form,  directing  nations  and  forcing  all  to 
bow  to  her  conquering  power.  Ease,  wealth,  and 
earthly  power  took  the  place  of  suffering  for  their 

165 


166     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

Master,  poverty  in  the  things  of  the  world,  and  the 
power  that  cometh  only  from  above  so  abundantly 
manifested  in  the  lives  of  those  who  followed  closely 
in  the  footsteps  of  their  Lord.  Although  after  the 
fourth  and  fifth  centuries  the  methods,  doctrines, 
and  life  of  the  early  Christians  were  but  dimly,  if 
seen  at  all,  in  the  mass  of  those  who  lived  within 
the  pale  of  the  Church;  yet  during  the  darkest  of 
the  days  choice  spirits  here  and  there  are  to  be  seen 
who  sought  truly  to  represent  Christ.  Their  lives 
shone  with  resplendent  glory  amid  the  gloom  and 
darkness  that  surrounded  them.  These  noble  spirits 
sought  to  follow  not  men  but  Christ  in  both  their 
messages  and  life.  Doubtless  many  devout  and 
faithful  men  lived  whose  records  of  service  in  their 
daily  crucified  life  have  not  come  down  to  us ;  how- 
ever, from  the  history  we  do  have,  we  see  sparks, 
bright  and  beautiful,  from  the  Lord  of  glory  that 
have  sent  their  rays  across  the  centuries,  and  are 
shining  brighter  now  than  when  they  first  broke 
through  the  night  of  those  days. 

There  were  reformers  before  the  Reformation. 
They  lived  and  died  for  the  truths  they  held  in  the 
face  of  the  prevailing  corruption  seen  in  the  re- 
ligious life  and  thought  of  the  masses.  These  men 
made  the  Reformation  possible  by  preparing  hearts 
for  the  better  day,  and  giving  inspiration  and  en- 
couragement to  the  Reformers  who  laboured  under 
more  favourable  conditions  than  their  precursors. 
History  is  very  meagre  during  the  long  eclipse  that 


FORERUNNERS  OF  REFORMATION     167 

overshadowed  the  Christian  world,  yet  from  the 
records  of  those  who  often  sought  to  curb  and  crush 
the  activities  of  these  noble  men,  we  gather  many 
interesting  facts  that  have  their  direct  bearing  on 
the  future  life  of  the  churches.  By  looking  into  the 
basis  of  the  motives  that  kept  these  men  hopeful  and 
courageous  in  spite  of  all  opposition,  we  can  see 
something  of  the  eternal  principles  actuating  the 
lives  of  all  pioneer  leaders  in  advancing  God's  rule 
in  the  hearts  of  all  men. 

Wycliffe  (b.  ? — d.1384)  is  deservedly  called  the 
Morning  Star  of  the  Reformation.  He  condemned 
with  all  the  logic  of  a  masterful  mind  the  evil  prac- 
tices of  the  priests  of  his  day,  showing  the  folly  of 
fair  England  bowing  to  the  authority  of  Rome.  He 
did  not  fear  to  point  out  the  mercenary  spirit  of  the 
Roman  See.  The  authority  of  men  could  not  silence 
his  voice  in  speaking  for  the  liberty  of  the  Gospel 
for  the  individual  man. 

In  reading  his  Dominion  Founded  on  Grace 
Wycliffe's  views  of  the  Cross  may  be  inferred,  if 
not  seen  quite  plainly.  He  was  conscious  of  the 
blessed  reality  that  Christ  died  for  his  sins  and  to 
his  Master  alone  he  stands  or  falls.  He  did  not 
hesitate  to  say  that  Christ's  death  on  the  Cross  is 
sufficient  for  man's  needs,  and  it  is  not  at  all  neces- 
sary for  us  to  seek  forgiveness  from  priest  or  Pope. 
The  liberty  of  the  Gospel  made  men  free  indeed. 
He  neither  courted  the  favour  nor  feared  the  power 
of  earthly  authority. 


168     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

It  is  gratifying  indeed  to  see  how  this  one  person, 
though  separated  from  religious  leaders  of  his  day 
by  his  high  calling  in  Christ  Jesus,  yet  in  daily  com- 
munion with  the  source  of  all  power  because  he 
aligned  himself  with  the  eternal  realities  of  the 
Cross,  could  stand  against  the  powerful  foes  of  his 
day.  His  message  and  life  could  not  be  curbed  by 
earthly  powers,  even  in  those  days,  because  he  took 
his  stand  upon  the  ever  sufficient  truths  of  the 
Redeemer,  preached  and  lived  them;  therefore  the 
consciences  of  the  men  of  his  day,  though  seared, 
responded  with  hearty  approval  as  he  sought  to 
please  God  and  not  man.  He  started  forces  that 
have  not  ceased  to  move  for  God  and  humanity  unto 
this  day.  These  forces  at  times  since  his  day  may 
seem  to  be  smothered  by  the  cruel  hands  of  the 
persecutor,  but  they  always  rose  from  the  seeming 
defeat — being  purified  by  the  fires  of  the  enemy — 
better  and  more  powerful  to  give  all,  who  truly  de- 
sire to  serve  the  Lord,  the  purity,  strength,  and  lib- 
erty of  the  Gospel.  What  the  Cross  had  brought  to 
him  he  was  ever  ready  to  magnify  and  give  his  life 
to  make  known  these  glorious  truths  to  others. 

John  Huss  (b.  1369 — d.  141 5)  was  a  remarkable 
man  in  many  ways.  He  was  a  profound  intellectual 
student  at  the  famous  University  of  Prague.  This 
marvellous  youth  with  keen  intellect  and  accom- 
plished mind  had  presented  to  him  in  his  early  man- 
hood a  career  of  great  honour  and  earthly  influence. 
A  great  battle  was  fought  in  his  heart.     He  de- 


FORERUNNERS  OF  REFORMATION     169 

scribes  the  struggles  that  resulted  in  his  self-de- 
nunciation and  abject  sacrifice  instead  of  following 
the  easy  course  of  the  corrupt  age  in  which  he  lived : 
"  My  feet  had  almost  gone ;  my  steps  had  well-nigh 
slipped;  and  unless  a  crucified  Jesus  had  come  to 
my  rescue,  my  soul  had  sunk  to  hell."  He  further 
tells  of  the  temptation  that  came  to  him  through 
the  Church  with  her  temporal  power  and  earthly 
glory.  He  had  to  choose  between  the  honour  that 
Cometh  from  men  or  that  which  comes  from  God 
alone.  "  Whether  I  should  seek  out  and  choose 
after  benefices  and  thirstily  grasp  for  honours, 
which  to  some  extent  I  did,  or  rather,  go  forth  with- 
out the  camp,  bearing  the  poverty  and  reproach  of 
Christ," — and  thus  follow  in  the  steps  of  the 
Saviour.  Notice  the  principle  which  was  the  de- 
ciding one  in  his  life  struggle — being  like  his  Master 
in  suffering  and  bearing  reproach  that  he  might  be 
true  to  the  straight  course  of  duty.  He  was  willing 
to  renounce  the  life  of  ease  and  earthly  honour  and 
suffer  with  his  Lord  in  order  that  the  saving  power 
of  the  Gospel  might  be  known  among  his  fellow- 
men.  He  offered  all  upon  the  altar  of  duty  because 
of  what  Jesus  had  done  for  him,  being  ever  inspired 
and  driven  on  by  the  love  of  Christ  as  manifested  in 
His  death. 

In  his  life  and  teaching  he  forcibly  illustrates  the 
dynamic  influence  of  the  Cross  in  a  life  wholly  given 
to  God.  He  was  led  on  by  the  same  spirit  that  his 
Lord  set  forth  in  His  work  for  man's  redemption. 


170      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

Watch  him  as  he  stands  amid  the  flames  that  were 
made  bigger  by  his  books,  bed,  and  clothing  being 
piled  on  them,  and  see  how  he  suffered  martyrdom, 
counting  it  all  joy  to  follow  in  the  steps  of  his 
Master.  Nothing  was  too  hard  for  him  to  endure 
for  Jesus  who  had  done  so  much  for  him.  The  fires 
that  John  Huss  and  Wycliffe  started  are  burning 
still.  Though  in  their  day  they  shined  as  in  a  dark 
place,  now  the  day-star  has  arisen,  and  its  rays  are 
piercing  the  darkness  of  all  lands. 

The  Moravian  Brethren  were  the  descendants  of 
John  Huss.  The  annals  of  men  cannot  begin  to  tell 
the  blessings  that  have  come  to  the  world  through 
these  unique  people.  Much  that  is  good  in  the 
Reformation,  and  also  the  beginning  of  the  modern 
missionary  movements  can  be  traced  directly  to 
these  Moravian  Brethren.  Heaven  alone  will  reveal 
the  large  part  that  they  have  had  in  keeping  alive 
and  giving  strength  to  the  forces  that  really  make 
for  the  coming  of  God's  kingdom  in  all  lands. 

"  A  tree  is  known  by  its  fruits,"  hence  we  know 
more  about  the  spirit  and  teachings  of  John  Huss, 
as  we  study  these  who  received  their  impulse  from 
him,  than  we  can  learn  from  the  meagre  history  of 
his  own  day  given  to  us  largely  by  his  enemies.  His 
message  and  life  were  reproduced  in  the  Moravian 
Brethren.  They  form  one  of  the  most  interesting 
and  inspiring  chapters  in  missions.  As  we  study  the 
forces  that  dominated  their  efforts — the  one  funda- 
mental ideal  ever  uppermost  in  all  they  did — we 


FORERUNNERS  OF  REFORMATION  171 

have  obtained  the  secret  that  kept  the  flames  of 
ApostoHc  Christianity  ahve  in  the  darkest  days,  and 
that  has  ever  been  the  moving  force  in  advancing  the 
Lord's  work  in  all  lands. 

"  The  one  motive  that  has  been  their  battle  cry 
from  the  beginning  is  '  To  win  for  the  Lamb  that 
was  slain  the  reward  of  His  suffering/  While 
acknowledging  the  supreme  authority  of  the  Great 
Commission,  they  have  ever  emphasized  as  their 
chief  incentive  the  inspiring  truth  concerning  our 
Lord's  work  foretold  in  Is.  53.ioff.,  making  the 
Saviour's  suffering  the  incentive  to  all  their  activity. 
In  no  other  way  can  we  so  effectively  bring  the 
suffering  Saviour  the  reward  of  His  Passion  as  by 
missionary  labour,  whether  we  go  ourselves  or  en- 
able others  to  go."  Though  these  Brethren  have 
been  a  small  body,  yet  they  sent  their  first  mission- 
ary far  hence  to  heathen  lands  some  seventy  years 
before  William  Carey  went  to  India.  They  have 
been  the  seed  germ  of  all  modern  foreign  mission 
efforts.  Carey  received  his  impulse  to  go  to  the 
benighted  lands  from  them,  and  he  was  able  to  en- 
force his  argument  and  make  effective  his  appeal  to 
the  sluggish  hearts  of  his  fellow-labourers  by  telling 
them  what  the  Moravian  Brethren  had  already 
done.  He  could  assure  his  own  people,  who  were  so 
slow  to  heed  his  call,  that  his  desire  to  carry  the 
Gospel  to  the  perishing  millions  without  any  knowl- 
edge of  His  saving  truth  was  not  an  impossible  task 
or  the  fanciful  notion  of  one  beside  himself :    These 


172     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

Brethren  had  already  been  labouring  with  success  in 
the  heathen  lands  for  many  years.  Both  his  call  and 
his  ability  to  carry  it  out  were  due  to  them. 

Ward — William  Carey's  first  companion  in 
India's  mission  efforts — said:  "  If  ever  I  am  a  mis- 
sionary worth  a  straw,  I  owe  it  to  these  Brethren." 

John  Wesley  received  from  these  same  Brethren 

the  blessed  assurance  of  his  acceptance  in  the  "  well 

Beloved  "  which  made  him  the  mighty  preacher  he 

was.     If  he  had  not  come  in  constant  touch  with 

them  in  his  early  ministry  and  learned  their  secret 

of  calm  trust  in  the  grace  of  our  Lord, — not  seeking 

salvation  or  peace  of  heart  from  man's  own  efforts 

— he  would  have  in  all  probability  remained  the 

ordinary  minister  his  forefathers  were.    When  the 

peace  that  passeth  all  understanding  came  to  him 

after  long  weary  years  of  struggling  with  himself, 

the   Moravian    Brethren   having   taught   him    the 

way  of  the  Lord  more  perfectly,  then  he  could  go 

forth  preaching  the  Gospel  of  grace.     He  could 

plead  with  men  of  all  classes  and  places  to  accept  the 

finished  work  of  Christ  on  the  Cross,  and  be  free 

from  all  past  sins  to  live  wholly  unto  the  Lord  by 

the  power  of  the  indwelling  Spirit.     With  such  a 

message  as  this  he  moved  all  England,  and  his  voice 

has  stretched  across  the  years  reaching  to  many 

devout  souls  of  the  present  day.     We  can  get  a 

better  understanding  of  these  Brethren  as  a  whole 

by  seeing  the  spirit  that  caused  their  great  leader  to 

give  all  his  fortune  and  life  to  the  Lord's  work.    In 


FORERUNNERS  OF  REFORMATION     173 

a  recent  article  about  this  hero  we  find  the  follow- 
ing: ''One  of  the  most  attractive  characters  in  all 
the  history  of  missions  is  that  of  Count  Zinzendorf, 
Moravian  hero,  who  poured  out  his  wealth  and  gave 
the  service  of  his  life  gladly  that  the  Gospel  of 
Christ  might  be  preached  and  His  kingdom  extended 
among  men. 

"  The  familiar  story  of  his  consecration  of  life 
and  possessions  has  in  it  an  unmistakable  lesson. 
When  a  youth  one  day  he  was  standing  in  a  famous 
picture  gallery  at  Dusseldorf,  his  eyes  beheld  the 
Ecce  Homo  of  Sternberg  representing  the  Son  of 
God,  in  all  the  agony  of  His  sacrifice,  crowned  with 
thorns,  and  with  bleeding  hands  and  side;  and 
written  above  this  picture  was  this  inscription :  *  All 
this  I  did  for  thee ;  what  doest  thou  for  Me?  '  This 
rich  nobleman  stood  transfixed.  He  saw  the  little- 
ness and  baseness  of  a  selfish  life,  as  contrasted  with 
the  immeasurable  greatness  of  the  Divine  love,  and 
from  the  picture  gallery  he  went  out  that  day  to  a 
life  of  burning  zeal  and  sublime  heroism,  and  to 
say  henceforth,  '  I  have  but  one  passion,  and  that  is 
He — only  He.'  *'  This  suffering  One,  who  gave 
His  life  for  him  and  bore  his  sins  on  the  Cross, 
demanded  his  all  of  wealth  and  life  to  be  given 
fully  to  His  service  to  bring  home  the  precious  souls 
for  whom  Christ  died.  He  must  follow  the  foot- 
steps of  his  Master  seeking  to  win  the  world  to  the 
Father's  obedience. 

The  first  missionary  to  the  Moslem  world,  Ray- 


174.     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

mund  Lull,  reminds  us  somewhat  of  the  Moravian 
hero.  Raymund  Lull  was  an  unique  character  in  the 
thirteenth  century,  emerges  out  of  the  darkness  and 
formalism  of  his  day,  a  man  greatly  moved  on  by 
the  Spirit  of  God.  In  Samuel  M.  Zwemer's  Ray- 
inund  Lull,  First  Missionary  to  the  Moslems,  he 
speaks  thus  of  him:  **  One  evening  the  seneschal, 
was  sitting  on  his  couch  with  his  cithern  on  his 
knee,  composing  a  song  in  praise  of  a  noble  married 
lady  who  had  fascinated  him,  but  who  was  insen- 
sible to  his  passion.  Suddenly  in  the  midst  of  the 
erotic  song,  he  saw  on  his  right  hand  the  Saviour 
hanging  on  His  Cross,  the  blood  trickling  from  His 
hands  and  feet  and  brow,  looking  reproachfully  at 
him.  Raymund  Lull,  conscience-struck  started  up; 
he  could  sing  no  more;  he  laid  aside  his  cithern, 
deeply  moved,  retired  to  bed.  Eight  days  after  he 
again  attempted  to  finish  the  song,  but  again  took 
up  the  plea  of  an  unrequited  lover.  But  now  again, 
as  before,  the  image  of  Divine  love  incarnated  ap- 
peared— the  agonized  form  of  the  Man  of  Sorrows, 
the  dying  eyes  of  the  Saviour  were  fixed  on  him 
mournfully  pleading: 

'  See  from  His  head.  His  hands.  His  feet 
Sorrow  and  love  flow  mingled  down; 
Did  e^er  such  love  and  sorrow  meet, 
Or  thorns  compose  so  rich  a  crown  ?  ' 

The  vision  appeared  again  and  he  realized  it  was  a 
special  call  from  God  for  him  to  sacrifice  all  to 


FORERUNNERS  OF  REFORMATION     175 

His  service,  and  henceforth  he  had  only  one  passion, 
and  that  to  love  and  serve  Christ.  He  consecrated 
himself,  his  family,  and  all  his  possessions  to  do  the 
Lord'  work — to  be  a  slave  for  his  Master." 

The  rays  of  light  shone  the  brighter  because  of 
the  dense  darkness  of  that  day.  These  forerunners 
lived  and  struggled  for  the  purity  of  Christianity, 
gave  their  strength  in  complete  consecration  to  set 
the  imprisoned  truths  free.  The  Catholic  hierarchy 
in  the  main  sought  to  check  their  activities,  knowing 
that  the  doctrines  which  these  men  embodied  were 
diametrically  opposed  to  the  tenets  of  this  powerful 
organization  then  directing  the  civil  and  religious 
life  of  the  Western  world.  These  reformers  before 
the  Reformation  did  not  see  the  better  day  dawn 
with  any  great  splendour,  but  they  made  it  possible 
by  starting  forces  no  earthly  power  could  crush. 
They  were  moved  in  their  consecration  and  consum- 
ing love  for  the  truth  of  full  and  free  salvation  for 
all  the  people  by  the  example  of  their  Master.  Be- 
cause of  His  death  for  them  and  all  men,  they  lived 
unto  Him  for  the  world's  redemption.  They  loved 
their  Lord  far  more  than  earthly  honour  and  pass- 
ing praise :  no  course  of  ease,  no  way  of  pleasure  of 
a  crude  and  earthly  kind,  no  temporary  gain, 
prompted  them  in  their  noble  aims.  They  preferred 
to  enter  into  the  fellowship  of  His  suffering  and 
set  forth  Christ  and  Him  crucified  before  men. 
These  characteristics  made  them  stand  out  far 
ahead  of  their  fellows,  and  give  to  the  world  sorely 


176     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

in  need  a  leaven  that  has  worked  even  unto  this 
day,  inspiring  and  helping  others  to  live  more  fully 
as  the  Master  did  and  let  the  one  moving  principle 
of  His  love  forever  dominate  them. 


XIV 
THE  REFORMATION 

THE  Reformation  was  one  of  the  greatest  up- 
heavals of  history.  All  we  have  good  in  our 
present  Christian  civilization  may  be  -traced 
largely  to  this  awakening.  The  shades  of  a  long 
weary  night  hung  heavily  upon  the  human  family  at 
the  dawn  of  this  world-influencing  movement.  The 
morals  and  ideals  of  men  were  at  a  low  ebb.  The 
sea  of  corruption  flooded  all  the  avenues  of  life 
and  submerged  the  land  in  the  worst  forms  of  vice. 
It  is  impossible  to  tell  what  it  cost  in  human  life 
and  sacrifice  to  bring  about  the  Reformation,  We 
will  never  know  the  number  who  gave  their  lives 
on  the  battlefield,  at  the  stake,  or  passed  under 
torture  of  the  guillotine  for  the  principles  of  the 
Reformation.  Europe  was  stained  for  years  with 
the  blood  of  the  faithful  martyrs  because  they  would 
not  surrender  the  freedom  which  belongs  to  all  men 
in  Christ  Jesus.  No  terrors  daunted  the  men  who 
purchased  the  liberty  we  now  enjoy.  They  fought 
as  seeing  Him  who  is  invisible,  and  who  is  with 
those  who  follow  Him  through  all  manner  of  perse- 
cution.    Their  methods  were  not  always  those  we 

177 


178      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

would  commend  in  these  days ;  but  the  struggle  was 
so  complicated,  reaching  to  all  the  phases  of  politi- 
cal, literary,  and  religious  life,  that  we  cannot  com- 
pare it  to  anything  we  have  in  our  day.  Their 
methods  were  the  best  they  knew  how  to  devise  to 
meet  the  conditions  facing  them.  The  situation  in- 
volved everything  with  them  and  us.  The  great 
leaders  were  prompted  by  love  for  their  Master. 
They  were  determined  to  be  freed  from  the  religio- 
political  tyranny  of  their  day — the  worst  in  the 
world's  history. 

The  Reformation  was  not  primarily  a  missionary 
movement,  yet  without  it  there  could  not  have  been 
any  modern  mission  era.  National  and  individual 
independence  to  worship  God  according  to  the  dic- 
tates of  the  conscience  must  first  be  won  and  then 
the  war  of  conquest  in  other  lands  could  be  inaugu- 
rated. Although  some  of  the  Reformers,  when  once 
in  power  showed  an  intolerance  which  must  be  con- 
demned most  severely,  yet  the  Reformation  as  a 
whole  was  true  to  the  following  principles :  individ- 
ual freedom  to  worship  God,  justice  to  all,  and  keen 
hatred  of  the  cruel  forms  of  religious  systems  that 
seek  to  bind  the  hearts  and  minds  of  all  men. 

To  learn  the  one  moving  force  in  the  Reforma- 
tion we  shall  need  to  examine  into  the  lives  of  the 
moving  characters;  see  what  they  believed,  what 
principle  above  everything  else  dominated  their 
hearts  in  their  efforts  to  restore  Christianity  to  its 
original  purity.     To  know  this  and  how  they  pre- 


THE  REFORMATION  179 

pared  Christianity  for  the  modern  century  of  mis- 
sions, we  understand  the  one  expanding  principle 
of  Christianity  in  all  ages.  To  find  this  principle  we 
must  know  the  faith  of  the  great  leaders  in  relation 
to  the  Cross.  In  this  relation  we  find  the  secret  of 
their  success  and  their  permanent  contribution  to  the 
conquest  of  the  world  to  our  Lord. 

Luther  says  about  Gal.  3.13 :  "  God  laid  on  Christ 
the  sins  of  all  men."  He  further  says  about  the 
Cross:  "Jesus  took  upon  Himself  that  which  we 
have  to  bear  as  sinners.  He  took  upon  Himself  our 
sins  in  order  to  remove  sin  from  us  and  to  bestow 
His  holiness  and  righteousness.  He  is  made  to  be 
sin — ^took  (or  bore)  the  sins  of  all  men — that  He 
might  be  the  Saviour  of  all  men.  Thus  the  sins  of 
men  are  laid  upon  Christ  as  taught  in  Is.  53.  He 
bore  the  curse  of  the  law  to  free  us  from  the  curse. 
It  was  the  wrath  of  God  Himself  which  Gal.  3.10 
teaches  that  Christ  endured  when  He  bore  the  curse 
of  the  law  upon  our  sins  then  resting  upon  Christ. 
The  Lamb  of  God  bearing  our  sins  is  punished  for 
our  sins  that  we  might  be  freed  therefrom." 

"  I  cannot  understand  the  woe 
That  Thou  was  pleased  to  bear; 
O  dying  Lamb,  I  do  but  know 
That  all  my  hopes  are  there." 

John  Calvin :  "  Christ  suffered  the  punishment  of 
our  sins  and  so  satisfied  the  justice  of  God.  In  this 
situation  Christ  took  upon  Himself  and  suffered  the 


180      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

punishment  which  by  the  righteous  judgment  of 
God  impended  over  all  sinners,  and  by  this  expiation 
the  Father  has  been  satisfied  and  His  wrath  ap- 
peased." Institutes,  Book  Second,  chapter  i6,  para- 
graphs I,  3,  4.  Again,  "  On  Christ's  righteous  per- 
son was  inflicted  the  punishment  which  belonged 
to  us." 

John  Wesley :  "  Let  us  see  Thy  Cross,  then  we 
shall  believe.  If  we  suffer  with  Thee,  we  shall  also 
reign  with  Thee.  I  exhorted  all  I  could  to  follow 
after  the  great  salvation  which  is  through  faith  in 
the  blood  of  Christ."  He  tells  of  his  crisis  from  a 
weak  struggling  faith  without  any  great  blessing  to 
the  world  to  that  of  conscious  forgiveness  and 
power  over  present  sins  and  a  life  of  wonderful 
fruitfulness  in  leading  others  to  live  unto  God.  He 
says  this  crisis  came  through  a  "  full  reliance  on 
the  blood  of  Christ  shed  for  me;  a  trust  in  Him  as 
my  sole  justification,  sanctification,  and  redemp- 
tion" (Journal,  Vol.  I,  pp.  73f.). 

He  further  remarks :  "  The  word  of  reconciliation 
which  the  Apostles  preached,  as  the  foundation  of 
all  they  taught,  was  that  we  are  reconciled  to  God, 
not  by  our  own  works,  nor  by  our  own  righteous- 
ness, but  wholly  and  solely  by  the  blood  of  Christ " 
(Journal,  Vol.  I,  p.  85).  One  needs  but  to  look  at 
the  texts  of  Wesley's  sermons  which  the  Father  so 
marvellously  blessed  in  preaching  to  England's 
masses  to  see  that  the  Cross  was  the  one  vital  theme 
that  moved  him  in  all  his  actions.     His  messages 


THE  REFORMATION  181 

always  pulsating  with  this  theme.  That  which 
caused  WycHffe  in  the  later  half  of  the  fourteenth 
century  to  proclaim  free  salvation  to  all  in  his 
Dominion  Founded  on  Grace,  sent  John  Huss 
bravely  to  face  the  fagots  in  Bohemia  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  15th  century,  enabled  the  faithful 
Moravian  Brethren  to  be  true  to  the  life  and  doc- 
trines of  our  Lord  in  their  struggles  of  the  i6th 
and  17th  centuries  was  this  same  principle  that 
actuated  John  Wesley  and  his  comrades  in  the 
1 8th  century,  and  has  come  down  to  us  by  faith- 
ful men  and  women  who  have  followed  in  their 
train.  It  is  nothing  more  than  the  Cross,  not  always 
rightly  understood  and  adequately  preached,  but  it 
was  the  Cross,  nevertheless,  that  kept  the  sparks 
alive  and  fanned  them  into  a  mighty  flame. 

These  Reformers  did  not  make  a  complete  break 
with  the  old  order  in  all  things.  Some  of  the 
heresies  that  had  accumulated  in  the  past  were  per- 
mitted to  continue  in  a  modified  form;  yet  in  the 
main  they  set  the  trend  of  Christianity  from  their 
day  to  this  by  the  doctrines  which  they  preached 
and  lived.  They  did  not  organize  foreign  mission 
societies.  They  had  to  give  first  consideration  to 
their  own  existence.  The  long  drawn  out  wars  of 
Europe  must  be  fought  first.  However,  they  laid 
the  foundation  of  modern  missions,  and  they  them- 
selves felt  the  need  of  entering  into  the  Lord's  plan 
to  preach  the  Gospel  to  all  classes  everywhere. 

The  friends  of  John  Wesley  in  choosing  the  most 


182      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

striking  saying  of  his  life  found  "  The  World  is 
my  Parish  *'  best  made  known  to  future  generations 
the  aim  of  his  fruitful  life.  Every  one  who  looks 
on  his  statue  in  Westminster  Abbey  will  forever 
look  on  this  sentence  as  the  most  comprehensive  one 
he  ever  uttered.  Not  only  Wesley  had  visions  of 
the  world  conquest,  but  Luther,  Zwingli,  Calvin, 
Knox,  Whitefield,  and  others  saw  that  Christianity 
must  eventually  subdue  all.  They  saw  in  the  Lord's 
death  salvation  for  all  classes  in  their  own  land  and 
all  peoples  everywhere.  It  was  a  better  knowledge 
of  the  Cross  and  a  desire  to  enter  more  fully  into 
the  spirit  of  the  same  that  made  the  Reformation 
possible,  and  opened  up  the  way  for  modern  mis- 
sions. Not  that  their  views  were  always  correct 
or  would  at  all  meet  the  needs  of  the  present — they 
were  content  to  dwell  upon  only  one  phase  of  the 
Cross  which  is  ever  important,  but  in  no  sense  all 
or  adequate — yet  the  progress  they  did  make  in 
breaking  with  the  past  and  ushering  in  the  better 
day  was  certainly  due  to  this  better  understanding 
of  the  doctrine  concerning  the  Lord's  death.  Had 
they  understood  more  fully  the  significance  of  this 
and  the  need  of  all  who  become  His  disciples  enter- 
ing fully  into  the  realities  of  the  Cross  life,  their 
work  would  have  been  far  more  telling  in  their  day, 
and  they  would  have  made  it  easier  for  those  who 
have  followed  them  to  march  forth  with  greater 
freedom  and  power  to  accomplish  the  unfinished 
task  of  making  disciples  of  all  nations, 


XV 


THE  BEGINNINGS  OF  MISSION  WORK  IN 
INDIA  AND  PERSIA 

THE  Moravian  Brethren  sent  their  first  mis- 
sionary to  the  foreign  lands  in  1732.  Other 
sporadic  efforts  had  been  made  to  spread  the 
glad  tidings  among  the  heathen,  yet  the  organized 
foreign  missionary  enterprise  on  a  large  and  con- 
tinuous increasing  force  commenced  when  Wm. 
Carey  went  to  India  in  the  latter  years  of  the  i8th 
century.  Modern  missions  are  usually  dated  from 
his  entrance  into  India. 

As  soon  as  the  Reformation  became  a  certainty 
and  the  fagots  of  persecution  ceased  to  burn,  the 
churches  of  Europe  became  satisfied,  contented  to 
rest  in  their  own  comforts  and  blessings.  When 
Wm.  Carey,  the  humble  cobbler,  sounded  out  the 
call  of  God  to  go  far  hence  to  the  regions  beyond,  it 
fell  on  dumb  ears  and  sleepy  eyes.  In  their  ease 
and  popular  favour  there  could  be  seen  a  tendency 
to  return  to  the  lifeless  forms  and  painful  indif- 
ference to  the  world's  needs  that  characterized  the 
religious  life  of  pre-Reformation  days;  but  we  can 
thank  God  that  the  vision  of  the  world  of  heathen 

183 


184.     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

darkness  and  superstition,  and  the  ever  pressing  con- 
.viction  that  we  ought  to  give  them  the  Hght  checked 
this  tendency  and  put  new  life  and  energy  in  the 
churches,  and  thus  rescued  them  from  the  relapse 
that  had  already  commenced.  These  early  pioneers 
who  gladly  gave  up  home  and  all  the  cherished  asso- 
ciations of  *'  their  own,  their  native  land  "  to  carry 
the  Gospel  of  hope  to  the  hopeless,  give  us  many 
worthy  examples  of  conquering  faith,  sublime  sac- 
rifice, patient  waiting  under  indescribable  hardships, 
and  seraphic  zeal  and  love  for  all  classes  of  non- 
Christian  peoples.  The  reflex  action  of  these  early 
efforts  among  the  heathen  had  a  wonderful  influence 
upon  the  home  churches. 

Owing  to  the  great  mass  of  material,  filled  with 
many  examples  that  strikingly  illustrate  the  spirit 
and  motive  that  sent  these  heroes  to  the  lands  with- 
out the  Gospel,  it  is  with  great  difficulty  to  limit  the 
discussion  as  we  must  in  an  investigation  like  this. 
However,  I  have  sought  to  choose  typical  leaders  in 
all  the  early  movements  of  the  great  mission  fields. 
To  find  the  principles  that  actuated  these  men — the 
one  force  uppermost  in  all  their  action  for  the  Lord 
of  the  harvest — we  thereby  learn  the  dominating 
factor  in  mission  efforts  in  all  lands.  I  have  found 
much  joy  in  seeking  out  the  central  truth  that  has 
worked  in  the  hearts  of  these  pioneer  men  with 
world  visions  like  their  Master,  going  forth  to  repre- 
sent Him  where  His  name  was  not  known.  Both 
the  spirit  and  motives  that  moved  them  to  go  and 


BEGINNINGS  IN  INDIA  AND  PERSIA     185 

the  methods  of  propaganda  are  intensely  interest- 
ing and  helpful  to  us  in  these  days. 

WILLIAM    CAREY    AND    HIS    CO-LABOURERS 

Although  Carey  laboured  seven  years  for  his  first 
trophy  of  the  Gospel  in  India,  yet  the  influence  of 
this  one  man  cannot  be  estimated.  Krishna  Pal,  his 
first  convert,  was  well  worth  seven  years  of  labour 
and  patient  waiting.  We  know  what  Carey  em- 
phasized in  his  preaching  as  of  first  importance  by 
the  confession  of  this  convert.  Soon  after  Krishna 
Pal  became  a  disciple  of  the  Master  he  wrote  the 
following  confession  to  the  home  churches:  *' By 
light  springing  up  in  the  heart,  we  know  that  sinners 
becoming  repentant,  through  the  suffering  of  Christ, 
obtain  salvation.  I  was  the  vilest  of  sinners :  He 
hath  saved  me.  Sinners  without  Christ  there  is  no 
help.  Christ  the  world  to  save  gave  His  own  soul. 
Such  love  was  never  heard ;  for  sinners  Christ  gave 
His  own  soul.  For  the  sake  of  saving  sinners  He 
forsook  the  happiness  of  heaven.  In  Christ's  sor- 
row I  will  be  sorrowful."  No  better  confession  can 
be  found  from  one  who  had  been  a  disciple  of  Christ 
so  short  a  while.  We  see  how  soon  the  Holy  Spirit 
establishes  this  first  disciple  in  the  cardinal  doctrines 
of  redemption.  He  being  won  without  the  com- 
promise of  the  truth,  won  wholly  to  God,  must  have 
given  the  patient  plodder  much  hope  and  encourage- 
ment. He  found  in  his  early  efforts  the  reward  of 
his  faithfulness  to  the  message,  and  this  made  it 


186     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

possible  for  him  to  become  the  "  cheerful  old  man  " 
in  one  of  the  most  trying  heathen  fields  in  the  world. 
Krishna  Pal  also  wrote  a  hymn,  which  is  one  of 
the  great  hymns  of  the  last  century,  that  throws 
much  light  on  Carey's  message  about  the  Cross.  I 
give  that  part  which  bears  especially  on  this. 

"  O  thou  my  soul  forget  no  more 
The  Friend  who  all  my  sorrows  bore, 
Let  the  idol  be  forgot ; 
But  O  my  soul  forget  Him  not. 

"  Renounce  thy  works  and  ways  with  grief, 
And  fly  to  this  Divine  relief; 
Nor  Him  forget  who  left  His  throne 
And  for  thy  life  gave  up  His  own." 

Carey  certainly  taught  him  the  great  doctrine  of 
the  Cross  and  this  became  the  mainspring  of  this 
Hindu's  new  life.  The  Cross  gave  power  to  this 
missionary's  message  to  break  through  the  most 
rigid  caste  known  to  the  world  and  won  Krishna 
Pal  to  allegiance  to  Christ  under  all  circumstances. 
In  writing  the  people  in  England  about  the  first 
Brahman  who  was  baptized  Carey  said :  "  Krishna 
Prosad,  then  nineteen,  gave  up  his  friends  and  his 
caste  with  much  fortitude.  He  is  the  first  Brahman 
who  has  been  baptized.  The  word  of  Christ's  death 
seems  to  have  gone  to  his  heart,  and  he  continues 
to  receive  the  word  with  meekness/' 


BEGINNINGS  IN  INDIA  AND  PERSIA     187 

In  discussing  the  kind  of  men  who  ought  to  go  to 
foreign  fields  he  also  wrote :  "  Missionaries  must  be 
men  of  great  piety,  prudence,  courage,  and  forbear- 
ance, of  undoubted  orthodoxy  in  their  sentiments, 
and  must  enter  with  all  their  heart  into  the  spirit  of 
their  mission.  They  must  be  willing  to  leave  all  the 
comforts  of  life  behind  them,  and  encounter  all  the 
hardships  of  a  torrid  or  frigid  climate,  an  uncom- 
fortable manner  of  living,  and  every  other  incon- 
venience that  can  attend  this  manner  of  living." 
Happily  the  conditions  in  most  of  the  foreign  fields 
have  so  changed  since  his  day  that  we  do  not  have 
to  encounter  some  of  the  things  he  mentions;  but 
if  all  who  were  to  go  forth  had  the  spirit  to  do  so, 
they  might  in  every  case  become  the  cheerful  and 
ever  hopeful  plodder  Carey  was. 

Ward  wrote  the  following  to  the  home  folks: 

"  Thou  sweetest  Saviour  let  Thy  Cross 
Win  many  Hindu's  hearts  to  Thee ; 
This  shall  make  up  for  every  loss, 
While  Thou  art  ours  eternally." 

Throughout  the  writings  of  Carey,  his  com- 
panions, and  the  words  that  have  come  to  us  from 
their  first  converts  we  see  everywhere  shining  the 
doctrine  of  the  Cross  as  taught  by  Paul  and  the 
other  New  Testament  writers.  It  was  the  great 
realities  of  the  Lord's  sufferings  that  thrust  them 
out,  gave  them  hope  and  strength  to  continue  in  the 


188     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

presence  of  so  much  to  discourage,  and  finally  gave 
them  victory  along  right  lines. 


HENRY    MARTIN 

This  seraphic  spirit  seemed  to  be  consumed  with 
a  passion  for  the  lost  of  India  and  Persia  like  his 
Master  showed  for  all  the  world.  Henry  Martin's 
meat  and  drink  was  to  give  himself  wholly  to  his 
Master's  will  and  be  spent  for  those  in  the  bondage 
of  sin.  These  words  came  from  his  heart  soon  after 
landing  in  India :  "  I  almost  think  to  be  prevented 
going  among  the  heathen  as  a  missionary  would 
break  my  heart."  "  Now  let  me  burn  out  for  God  " 
came  from  him  as  he  began  his  active  missionary 
work.  One  of  his  first  sermons  preached  in  the 
foreign  field  was  from  this  text :  "  Christ  crucified, 
unto  the  Jews  a  stumbling-block,  and  unto  the 
Greeks  foolishness ;  but  unto  them  which  are  called, 
both  Jews  and  Greeks,  Christ  the  power  of  God,  and 
the  wisdom  of  God."  This  shows  the  keynote  of 
his  message  among  the  mystics  and  gropers  after 
God  in  India.  And  further :  "  As  ministers  of  joy 
and  peace  we  rise  up  at  the  command  of  God  and 
preach  Christ  crucified  to  you  all.  Christ  died  for 
His  bitterest  enemies."  He  rejoiced  in  anticipation 
of  all  nations  receiving  the  despised  doctrine  of  the 
Cross!  when  the  children  of  men  will  see  their  utter 
helplessness  apart  from  God  and  His  provision  for 
their  redemption.     "  Oh,  that  I  could  make  some 


BEGINNINGS  IN  INDIA  AND  PERSIA     189 

returns  for  the  riches  of  God's  love.  Let  us  pray 
and  rejoice  and  rejoice  and  pray  that  God  may  be 
glorified,  and  the  dying  Saviour  see  the  travail  of 
His  soul." 

He  went  from  India  to  Persia  and  Arabia  where 
he  passed  into  God's  eternal  presence  after  a  few 
brief  years  as  a  foreign  missionary.  "  God  meas- 
ures life  by  love "  has  been  said,  hence  Henry 
Martin  lived  a  long  life;  for  nowhere  in  the  records 
of  missions  do  we  see  any  one  who  gave  himself 
more  fully  to  the  work  than  this  servant.  In  every 
page  of  his  journal  there  is  seen  his  intense  love 
for  those  who  never  had  an  opportunity  to  know 
the  truth.  A  brilliant  student,  a  most  promising 
youth,  one  who  felt  most  keenly  the  separation  from 
home  ties,  loving  most  dearly  his  own  people;  yet 
he  went  to  the  heathen  lands  in  obedience  to  His 
Lord's  command, -inspired  by  His  loving  example, 
filled  with  the  same  spirit,  he  joyfully  went  to  His 
service,  entering  into  the  agony  of  the  Cross,  with 
complete  abandonment  of  self.  This  meant  death 
in  a  land  of  strangers  with  not  one  of  his  own  people 
nearby.  He  did  all  to  give  **  some  returns  for  the 
riches  of  His  love."  Many  heard  the  Gospel  for 
the  first  time  from  his  lips,  and  still  a  larger  number 
by  reading  the  Bible  he  laboured  so  hard  to  put  in 
the  vernacular  of  the  common  people,  and  many 
others  have  been  inspired  by  his  example  to  take  up 
the  work  he  started.  But  few  lives  have  done  more 
for  the  foreign  work  than  that  of  Henry  Martin's. 


190     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

And  but  few,  if  any,  have  entered  more  fully  into 
the  Cross  of  our  Saviour  than  he  did. 

ALEXANDER   DUFF 

Alexander  Duff  represents  a  distinct  class  of  mis- 
sionary workers.  He  was  the  first  to  go  to  any 
mission  field  to  use  education  as  a  means  of  reach- 
ing the  higher  classes  for  Christ.  William  Carey 
had  taught  in  the  government  college  at  Calcutta, 
but  teaching  was  not  the  chief  method  he  used  to 
win  people  to  Christianity.  However,  Duff  went 
out,  meaning  to  emphasize  teaching  as  the  best 
method  to  reach  and  mould  the  youths  of  India  for 
the  kingdom  of  God.  Many  since  his  day  in  the 
Far  and  Near  East  have  sought  to  follow  his 
example. 

Alexander  Duff  sought  over  and  over  again  to 
show  that  the  highest  culture  and  the  greatest  pos- 
sible talent,  the  broadest  learning,  and  the  most 
scientific  spirit  can  all  be  consecrated  to  the  work  of 
winning  the  heathen  to  the  Father's  rule;  and  that 
the  Cross  of  Christ  sanctified  and  glorifies  these 
things  when  it  is  given  its  rightful  place  in  the 
lives  of  the  missionaries.  He  sought  ever  to  do 
this  in  his  own  life  and  work.  In  this  he  was  a 
noble  example  for  all  times  and  fields. 

Just  before  he  embarked  for  India  he  preached, 
using  this  text,  "  I  am  a  debtor  both  to  the  Greeks 
and  barbarians  "  (Rom.  1.14),  saying:  "  There  was 
a  time  when  I  had  no  care  or  concern  for  the 


BEGINNINGS  IN  INDIA  AND  PERSIA     191 

heathen :  that  was  the  time  when  I  had  no  care  or 
concern  about  my  own  soul.  When  by  the  grace  of 
God  I  was  led  to  care  for  my  own  soul,  then  it  was 
I  began  to  care  for  the  heathen  abroad."  He 
preached  a  sermon  just  before  he  was  ordained  that 
showed  the  thought  uppermost  in  his  heart,  and 
which  became  uppermost  in  his  ministry  in  India. 
The  author  of  his  life  says  this  about  the  sermon: 
"  His  text  was  that  word  of  Paul  in  which  he  and  all 
his  true  successors  have  planted  the  missionary 
standard  for  Corinth  west  to  Kalumba  on  the 
Zona,  and  east  to  Duff  in  Calcutta :  *  I  determined 
not  to  know  anything  among  you  save  Jesus  Christ 
and  Him  crucified.'  This  was  the  keynote  of  his 
life  in  .he  foreign  field." 

About  his  early  efforts  to  give  himself  fully  to 
the  Father's  will  and  service  he  made  this  confes- 
sion :  "  To  imbue  these  dead  exercises  with  the 
living  energy  of  heaven,  and  to  convert  them  into 
usefulness  in  the  service  of  heaven,  I  endeavour 
fully  and  imperfectly,  yet  I  trust,  earnestly  and  in- 
cessantly to  pour  out  my  soul  in  prayer  and  suppli- 
cation to  the  Father  of  spirits,  that  He  may  cause 
His  richest  blessings  to  descend  upon  my  feeble  ef- 
forts. I  have  endeavoured  to  examine  into  the  state 
of  my  soul,  to  prove  the  sincerity  of  my  motives  in 
my  self-dedication  to  the  cause  of  Christ.  I  have 
endeavoured  not  only  to  subdue,  but  absolutely  cru- 
cify and  annihilate  that  fair  and  plausible  and  in- 
sinuating but  withal  hell-enkindled  and  soul-destroy- 


192      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

ing  thing  self:  I  have  endeavoured  to  count  the  cost 
and  view  it  in  its  most  fearful  magnitude." 

These  brief  quotations  reveal  beyond  the  shadow 
of  a  doubt  the  large  part  the  Cross  had  in  sending 
these  pioneer  missionaries  to  India  and  her  neigh- 
bouring countries,  and  also  the  first  consideration 
given  to  this  doctrine  in  planting  Christianity  on 
foreign  soil.  The  Cross  was  the  basis  of  their  hope 
to  supplant  heathen  error  with  the  truth  that  gives 
light  to  every  one  approaching  Him. 


XVI 

MISSIONS  TO  BURMA  AND  AFRICA 

THe  intense  suffering  and  hardships  of  the 
first  missionaries  to  Burma  and  Africa  are 
probably  without  a  parallel  in  the  history 
of  missions.  The  torrid  dimate;  the  dense  igno- 
rance of  the  people,  who  dwelt  in  the  forests  of 
these  lands;  the  chaotic  state  of  the  tribal  govern- 
ments; the  isolation  of  the  missionary;  the  attitude 
of  the  savages  among  whom  they  went, — all  com- 
bined to  make  the  task  more  dangerous  and  trying. 
However,  some  of  the  world's  greatest  heroes  have 
lived  and  died  in  their  efforts  "  to  throw  out  the 
banner  of  the  Cross "  into  the  heart  of  darkest 
Africa  and  fair  Burma.  The  more  difficult  the  task 
and  the  more  dangerous  the  undertaking,  the  more 
consecrated  and  the  more  earnest  have  the  men  and 
women  of  God  given  themselves  to  the  work. 

As  England  had  the  honour  of  sending  the  first 
missionary  of  modern  missions  to  India,  so  the 
United  States  had  a  like  honour  in  sending  the  first 
one  to  Burma.  Judson  went  out  not  knowing  where 
he  went  and  what  would  befall  him.  He  went  with 
thorough  consecration  and  deepest  devotion  to  the 
work  whereunto  he  had  been  called.     In  reading 

193 


194      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

about  his  isolation,  separation  from  his  family,  in- 
tense suffering  in  prison,  wandering  among  hostile 
tribes,  in  death  oft  we  get  the  impression  but  few 
men  have  manifested  more  fully  the  spirit  of  our 
Lord's  life  and  passion  for  the  lost  world.  His 
convictions  were  founded  on  the  eternal  promises 
of  God,  his  joy  of  service  came  from  the  Father 
above,  his  motives  that  prompted  all  his  actions  were 
those  that  moved  his  Master  in  seeking  to  redeem 
the  world,  and  his  hope  was  not  in  the  seen,  but  in 
the  power  that  accompanies  those  who  follow  fully 
in  the  footsteps  of  the  lowly  Nazarene. 

Soon  after  Judson  reached  Burma  he  wrote  a 
tract  to  explain  to  the  natives  his  reasons  for  coming 
to  them.  This  tract  furnishes  interesting  data  as 
to  the  meaning  of  the  Cross  in  his  life  and  efforts. 
In  this  he  says :  "  This  God-man,  who  is  called  Jesus 
Christ,  being  man,  endured  in  our  stead  severe  suf- 
ferings and  death,  the  punishment  due  to  our  sins; 
and  being  God,  is  able  by  virtue  of  having  endured 
these  sufferings,  to  deliver  all  His  disciples  from 
the  punishment  of  hell,  redeeming  them  with  His 
own  hfe,  and  to  instate  them  in  heaven." 

He  knew  full  well  what  Christ  had  endured  for 
him,  hence  no  hardship  or  danger  was  too  trying 
for  him  to  bear  for  his  Master.  He  earnestly  de- 
sired to  arm  himself  with  the  same  mind  as  he  went 
forth  to  '  wrestle  with  the  powers  of  darkness. 
Twenty-one  months  of  prison  life,  separation  from 
his  wife  and  baby,  having  to  leave  them  sometimes 


BURMA  AND  AFRICA  195 

in  heathen  hands,  greatly  intensified  his  sufferings; 
but  it  was  all  for  Christ,  and  those  whom  He  came 
to  save.  Those  pairs  of  fetters  about  his  ankles  and 
hands  in  the  inner  prison,  with  all  the  filth  and 
gloom  of  an  Oriental  dungeon,  were  borne  because 
of  what  his  Master  had  done  for  him  and  the  lost 
world.  He  knew  he  could  not  be  defeated  as  he 
followed  in  the  steps  of  Him  who  won  His  greatest 
victory  in  death  and  became  perfected  in  suffering; 
and  the  servant  is  not  greater  than  his  Master.  He 
said  after  his  prison  experience :  "  I  felt  a  strong  de- 
sire henceforth  to  know  nothing  among  this  people, 
but  Jesus  Christ  and  Him  crucified,  giving  up  every- 
thing else  but  these  precious  truths  of  the  Gospel 
of  our  great  God  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.'*  These 
held  him  to  his  work  in  "  the  dark  and  cloudy 
days  "  when  all  earthly  hope  had  fled.  His  founda- 
tion was  sure  because  he  built  on  the  truths  which 
are  the  ground  and  pillar  of  the  true  New  Testa- 
ment church  of  all  times  and  places. 

The  denominations  in  the  United  States  are  put- 
ting on  large  programs  to  raise  immense  sums  of 
money  to  meet  the  great  needs  of  the  world  in  the 
work  of  reconstruction.  If  the  same  spirit  which 
characterized  the  life  of  Judson  in  Burma,  will 
dominate  the  hearts  of  the  Christian  people  of  this 
country  in  giving  themselves  fully  to  Christ  for  the 
redemption  of  the  needy  peoples  of  this  earth,  they 
will  have  no  trouble  in  raising  these  large  sums  of 
money.     The  spirit  that  dominated  the  men  who 


196     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

started  the  American  foreign  mission  enterprise 
should  be  the  guiding  force  in  the  lives  of  God's 
people  in  this  day.  If  such  a  spirit  will  be  revived 
in  the  efforts  to  raise  large  sums  of  money,  then  the 
greatest  possible  blessings  will  come  to  God's  people. 
These  large  sums  of  money,  important  as  they  are, 
will  not  be  the  greatest  blessings,  but  give  great  op- 
portunity for  us  all  to  give  ourselves  fully  unto  the 
Lord  for  service  in  meeting  the  needs  of  the  human 
family  the  world  over.  Lives  given  wholly  to  the 
Lord  as  Judson  did  is  the  greatest  need  of  the  hour, 
and  this  will  be  the  greatest  possible  blessing. 

DAVID  LIVINGSTONE  AND  HIS  COADJUTORS 

David  Livingstone  and  his  fellow-workers  have 
done  a  work  of  love  and  sacrifice  for  the  black  man 
of  Africa  that  ought  to  inspire  the  Christians  of 
today  to  do  their  full  duty  and  fill  up  that  which  is 
lacking  or  "  behind  of  the  afflictions  of  Christ  in  my 
flesh  for  his  body's  sake,  which  is  the  church." 

Livingstone  wandered  through  fever-heated 
forests  infested  by  ferocious  animals  and  human 
forms  crying  for  the  white  man's  life.  He  strug- 
gled across  desert  plains  with  his  wife  and  delicate 
little  ones  suffering  for  water  and  the  necessities  of 
life.  He  gladly  endured  these  things,  for  Jesus  had 
agonized  for  him,  and  he  must  enter  into  the  fellow- 
ship of  His  suffering.  He  died  daily  that  he  might 
arouse  the  Christian  lands  to  the  needs  of  this  neg- 
lected continent.    No  wonder  he  deemed  it  necessary 


BURMA  AND  AFRICA  197 

to  reconsecrate  his  life  to  God  and  his  work  in 
Africa  on  his  last  birthday.  He  offered  his  life 
again  upon  the  altar  of  service  to  Him  who  had 
purchased  it  with  so  great  a  price.  He  died  alone 
except  for  the  faithful  natives  in  the  heart  of  Africa 
with  his  head  between  his  knees  in  supplication  to 
the  throne  of  all  grace.  No  truer  devotion  can  be 
found  among  the  children  of  men  than  he  mani- 
fested to  his  God-given  task,  which  ought  to  find 
more  hearty  imitation  in  these  easier  days  of  service. 
How  gladly  we  ought  to  join  in  the  task  and  mani- 
fest the  spirit  of  these  triumphant  martyrs  of  years 
ago  and  speedily  carry  the  message  of  salvation  to 
those  who  are  still  waiting  for  it. 

Robt.  Moffat  tells  about  the  struggle  he  had  as 
to  how  he  would  spend  his  life  in  God's  vineyard: 
'*  I  thought  how  I  had  in  the  past  given  myself  to 
the  world,  and  not  to  the  service  of  Him  who  had 
died  for  me."  "  Him  who  died  for  me  "  was  the 
deciding  influence  in  giving  his  life  to  the  work  in 
Africa.  His  life  was  joyfully  given  and  entirely 
spent  to  make  known  the  death  of  Christ  to  the 
degraded  and  uncivilized  hordes  of  the  Dark 
Continent. 

In  writing  about  his  decision  to  give  himself  un- 
reservedly to  the  task  of  proclaiming  the  salvation 
that  Cometh  to  all  men  to  these  people,  he  says: 
"  No !  behold  I  go  full  of  hope,  transported  by  the 
prospects  of  being  counted  worthy  to  undergo  a  few 
transient  troubles  for  His  sake,  who  for  our  sakes 


198     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

became  poor,  who  for  our  sakes  was  despised  and 
rejected,  was  crucified  and  slain.  Oh,  that  I  had  a 
thousand  lives,  and  a  thousand  bodies;  all  of  them 
should  be  devoted  to  no  other  employment  but  to 
preach  Christ  to  these  degraded,  despised,  yet  be- 
loved mortals.  I  desire  to  suffer  anything,  even 
death  itself,  if  thereby  God  is  glorified  in  the  salva- 
tion of  the  heathen." 

It  was  natural  and  easy  for  one  so  fully  conse- 
crated to  the  task  of  bringing  Africa  to  God  to  say 
to  his  home  Board,  "  Anywhere  if  it  means  forward 
in  the  work."  He  cared  only  for  the  glory  of  God 
in  bringing  heathen  hearts  to  His  service.  Moffat 
is  a  worthy  example  to  all  who  would  follow  their 
Master  in  giving  life  to  save  life.  Many  noble  souls 
have  given  their  lives  for  the  redemption  of  Africa, 
but  none  more  fully  than  Livingstone  and  Moffat. 
These  servants  of  God  in  opening  up  the  work  en- 
countered the  greatest  difficulties.  They  by  their 
consecration  and  devotion  in  opening  paths  into  the 
unexplored  fields  and  setting  up  the  banner  of  the 
Cross  have  made  it  easier  for  all  who  have  been 
called  to  follow  them  in  the  work.  Both  by  their 
message  and  their  lives  among  the  natives  they 
sought  to  reveal  the  Gospel  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  All  who  wish  His  kingdom 
to  come  in  that  land  and  His  will  to  be  as  in  heaven 
should  pray  and  labour  to  see  more  men  who  will 
give  themselves  to  their  Master,  and  set  forth 
always  His  spirit  of  service  like  these  early  mes- 


BURMA  AND  AFRICA  199 

sengers  did.  By  such  service  only  can  we  expect 
to  arouse  the  sleeping  millions  in  spiritual  darkness 
and  check  the  march  of  a  far  more  stubborn  foe 
than  the  heathenism  of  the  past,  namely,  Moham- 
medanism in  its  organized  aggressiveness.  The  task 
is  v^orthy  of  the  highest  consecration,  most  Christ- 
like zeal  and  passion  for  the  lost,  and  needs  to  be 
pushed  with  all  possible  haste.  The  great  realities 
of  the  Cross  alone  can  give  life  and  power  equal  to 
the  demands  of  the  warfare. 


XVII 
THE  WORK  IN  CHINA  'AND  JAPAN 

HE  who  seeks  to  examine  into  the  mighty 
Christian  currents  that  have  spread  over 
these  lands  during  the  modern  century  of 
missions  will  find  himself  flooded  with  the  most  in- 
teresting material.  Fortunately,  however,  the  source 
of  these  currents  may  be  easily  found.  The  motives 
that  started  these  streams  and  the  power  that  drove 
them  over  the  arid  plains  of  heathen  life  stand  out 
prominently  and  may  be  seen  by  the  casual  investi- 
gator. These  give  us  the  greatest  interest  and  the 
most  important  lesson. 

"Behold  what  God  has  wrought"  in  the  Far 
East  during  the  last  hundred  years  or  more  of  mis- 
sions. The  most  sanguine  hopes  of  the  first  mis- 
sionaries, who  gave  their  lives  to  redeem  these  lands 
to  Christ,  have  been  more  than  realized.  The  faith 
of  those  who  were  called  wild  and  fanatical  in  their 
expectation  of  the  Cross's  conquest  has  been  more 
than  fulfilled.  Even  the  prophecies  of  the  dreamers 
in  their  wildest  hallucinations,  as  to  the  future  ad- 
vancement of  the  Lord's  kingdom,  have  come  to 
pass.  Not  always  in  the  way  man  has  thought,  but 
in  the  Lord's  way,  and  certainly  beyond  the  expec- 

200 


CHINA  AND  JAPAN  201 

tation  of  our  feeble  faith.  He  hath  done  for  us 
"  exceeding  abundantly  above  all  that  we  asked  or 
thought,"  according  to  the  marvellous  working  of 
His  power  in  them.  Our  hearts  are  made  glad  as 
we  see  the  results  of  these  early  efforts  that  made 
the  latter  days  possible;  but  we  need  to  study  the 
situation  in  view  of  ascertaining  the  force  that  sent 
these  men  to  the  conflict  and  sustained  them  amid 
the  greatest  trials  and  most  powerful  opposition, 
overcoming  age-long  customs  and  superstition,  caus- 
ing the  Oriental  to  turn  from  all  that  was  sacred  in 
the  memory  of  their  religious  leaders,  and  accept  the 
meek  and  lowly  Christ.  The  forces  overcome,  as 
well  as  those  given  life  and  permanency  in  China 
and  Japan,  have  been  the  marvel  of  history.  A  few 
concrete  examples  will  be  examined  to  find  the  basic 
principle  in  the  lives  of  the  pioneer  missionaries  that 
have  brought  about  the  results  which  we  now  see. 

The  first  missionary  from  the  Protestant  forces 
of  the  West  to  reach  China  was  Robt.  Morrison, 
reaching  there  in  1807  from  England,  locating  in 
Canton  under  the  protection  of  the  East  India  Com- 
pany. He  had  to  live  with  the  foreigners  who  had 
to  stay  outside  of  the  city.  Robt.  Morrison  engaged 
a  teacher  and  went  to  work  on  the  language  soon 
after  reaching  China.  His  work  had  to  be  done  in 
secret — he  had  to  take  his  exercise  in  the  night  time. 
The  Chinese  watched  his  every  movement  with  great 
superstition  and  suspicion,  the  English  traders  were 
ready  to  lend  their  influence  against  this  fanatic,  and 


202     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

in  a  short  while  even  those  who  sent  him  out,  began 
to  think  of  his  efforts  as  fruitless  and  hopeless;  but 
the  present  and  all  future  generations  should  join 
together  in  thanking  God  for  Morrison's  faith  that 
doubted  not  in  the  hour  of  greatest  trial.  He  went 
to  give  his  life  to  the  Chinese  for  his  Master's  sake, 
and  he  never  deviated  from  his  holy  purpose  because 
of  the  hardships  of  the  work  or  the  opinions  of 
men.  Like  his  Master,  he  could  truly  say,  "  I  come 
to  do  Thy  will,  O  God,"  and  this  motive  was  upper- 
most in  all  his  actions. 

His  own  words  best  express  the  fundamental 
principle  that  led  in  all  his  efforts  to  make  known 
the  world's  Saviour  to  the  Chinese :  he  sought  ever 
more  to  portray  in  his  own  life  the  spirit  and  love  of 
the  Master.  He  prayed  soon  after  he  felt  called 
of  God  to  go  far  hence  unto  the  Gentiles  that  God 
would  station  him  in  the  part  of  the  mission  fields 
where  the  difficulties  were  the  greatest — from 
human  appearance  the  most  insurmountable.  Hear 
him  soon  after  reaching  Canton :  "  The  missionary 
of  Jesus  will  have  occasion  for  reproaching  himself 
that  he  did  not  serve  his  Lord  more  fully,  but  not 
for  being  a  missionary.  O  Calvary,  O  Calvary, 
when  I  view  the  blood  of  Jesus  streaming  down  Thy 
sides,  I  am  amazed  at  my  coldness  of  affections  to- 
wards the  Lord,  of  my  slothful  performance  of  the 
duties  which  the  authority  of  God,  but  shall  I  say, 
which  the  love  of  Jesus  more  strongly  impress  upon 
mef    Yes,  O  Father,  Thy  love  in  sending  Jesus; 


CHINA  AND  JAPAN  203 

and  O  my  Saviour,  Thy  love  in  giving  Thyself  for 
me;  and  Thou,  O  Holy  Spirit,  in  applying  the  sal- 
vation of  Jesus  to  my  guilty  conscience,  unitedly 
overcome,  and  constrain  me  to  live  not  unto  myself 
but  to  Thee."  The  Cross  was  the  one  thing  above 
everything  else  that  prompted  him  to  become  the 
first  missionary  in  the  modern  age  of  missions  to  go 
to  the  Middle  Kingdom.  Even  the  Father's  love 
and  the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit  gathered  around  the 
Cross.  Knowing  this  he  could  reply  to  the  critics  of 
the  Western  lands  in  joining  the  heathen  of  the 
Orient  in  asking,  "  Mr.  Morrison  do  you  expect  to 
make  any  impression  on  China?",  "No,  but  God 
will." 

He  laboured  faithfully  to  learn  the  language  so 
as  to  be  able  to  translate  the  Bible  into  the  vernacu- 
lar of  the  people,  preaching  as  he  had  opportunity, 
yet  much  of  his  time  had  to  be  spent  in  the  Eng- 
lish and  Portuguese  settlements  away  from  China 
proper.  No  great  results  attended  his  efforts  from 
what  appeared  during  his  life  time.  He,  too,  had 
his  first  convert  after  seven  years,  and  at  the  end 
of  twenty-seven  years  but  three  Christians  were  to 
be  found  as  the  results  of  his  seed  sowing.  He 
worked  by  faith,  gave  himself  completely  to  the 
task  committed  unto  his  hands  by  Him  who  sent 
him  there,  looking  to  the  Lord  for  the  increase.  He 
died  in  faith,  having  seen  the  fulfilment  of  the  prom- 
ises from  afar;  yet  all  the  Christian  world  and  the 
Orient  are  far  richer  because  of  the  consecration 


204     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

and  devotion  which  Robt.  Morrison  manifested  in 
his  work  in  China.  The  oblation  of  his  Hfe  given 
on  the  Lord's  altar  of  service  for  China's  redemp- 
tion is  sending  its  fragrance  upward  still  and  is 
blessing  many  lives.  The  manner  and  purpose  of 
his  devotion  were  in  line  with  that  of  his  Master's, 
hence  could  not  be  in  vain,  and  must  be  greatly 
blessed  where  human  need  is  so  poorly  met. 

The  man  who  has  done  most  to  spread  the  good 
news  of  salvation  into  the  interior  of  China  is  J. 
Hudson  Taylor,  mentioned  in  the  sixth  chapter  of 
this  book.  After  spending  a  term  of  service  in  and 
around  the  port  towns,  he  saw  that  the  missionary 
enterprise  needed  to  launch  out  into  the  deep  if  we 
expect  to  make  the  most  fruitful  haul.  Seeking  to 
be  clothed  with  the  power  and  wisdom  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  that  he  might  preach  the  Gospel  with  great 
power  in  the  neglected  provinces  of  China,  he  com- 
menced in  a  simple  way  the  China  Inland  Mission. 
Without  money  or  the  backing  of  any  church  or- 
ganization— only  the  promises  of  our  great  and  all 
powerful  God  with  him — he  started  his  work  with 
this  uppermost  in  his  plans :  "  The  work  and 
workers  are  the  Lord's,  and  if  we  follow  fully  His 
leadings,  can  depend  on  Him  to  care  for  us  in  all 
our  needs."  Hence,  as  it  has  already  been  men- 
tioned, he  never  made  any  appeals  to  men  for  money 
to  pay  the  expenses  of  the  China  Inland  Mission. 
He  sought  ever  to  "  have  faith  in  God,"  or  "  have 
the  faith  of  God,"  as  he  went  to  do  His  work. 


CHINA  AND  JAPAN  205 

The  wonderful  answer  to  prayer  that  is  constantly 
being  seen,  the  unique  plan  of  the  founder  and  those 
who  have  joined  him,  the  distinct  spiritual  emphasis 
manifested  in  the  work  and  workers,  the  rapid  in- 
crease of  foreign  and  native  helpers,  the  genuine 
consecration  and  sublime  sacrifice  of  the  thousands 
who  have  given  their  lives  unto  death  for  China's 
redemption,  reveal  most  emphatically  the  marks  of 
Divine  favour  upon  their  efforts.  No  one  can  know 
intimately  the  leaders,  even  in  this  day,  without  be- 
ing impressed  most  forcibly  with  the  thought  that 
they  are  seeking  and  are  doing  the  Lord's  will.  For 
emphasis,  I  repeat,  not  that  other  missions  with  dif- 
ferent methods  are  not  also  doing  His  will ;  but  the 
China  Inland  Mission  came  at  a  time  and  has 
laboured  in  such  a  way  as  to  refresh  the  pure  minds 
of  God's  children  everywhere  with  the  fact  that  we 
are  in  a  spiritual  warfare  in  the  heathen  lands :  and 
we  need  first  of  all  to  emphasize  spiritual  life  and 
methods  in  our  conflict  with  the  mighty  forces  of 
heathen  darkness,  and  those  who  do  this  best,  do 
most  to  bring  this  prodigal  world  to  the  Father's 
house.  This  lesson  cannot  be  emphasized  too  often 
in  all  lines  of  our  foreign  mission  work. 

The  guiding  loving  hand  of  God  can  be  seen  in 
the  founder  of  this  Mission  from  his  boyhood  days. 
In  his  own  writings  he  reveals  the  controlling  force 
in  his  early  consecration,  and  the  force  that  moved 
his  youthful  heart  to  give  all  to  his  Father.  To 
know  this  we  understand  the  secret  of  the  great 


206     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

Mission  he  was  instrumental  in  establishing,  and  is 
doing  so  much  for  the  regeneration  of  China.  He 
makes  the  following  pertinent  remarks  about  his 
conversion:  "She  (his  mother)  went  to  her  room 
and  turned  the  key  in  the  door  resolved  not  to  leave 
that  spot  until  her  prayers  were  answered.  Hour 
after  hour  did  that  mother  plead  for  me,  until  at 
length  she  could  pray  no  longer;  but  she  was  con- 
strained to  praise  God  for  that  which  His  Spirit 
taught  her  had  already  been  accomplished — the  con- 
version of  her  only  son. 

"  In  the  meantime  I  had  been  led  to  take  up  a 
little  Gospel  tract,  and,  while  reading  it,  was  struck 
with  the  sentence,  '  The  finished  work  of  Christ.' 
The  thought  passed  through  my  mind,  *  Why  does 
the  author  use  this  expression?  Why  not  say  the 
atoning  or  propitiatory  work  of  Christ?  '  Immedi- 
ately the  words  '  it  is  finished  '  suggested  themselves 
to  my  mind.  *  What  was  finished?  ',  and  I  at  once 
replied :  '  A  full  and  perfect  Atonement  and  satis- 
faction for  my  sin:  the  debt  was  paid  by  the  sub- 
stitute; and  Christ  died  for  our  sins,  and  not  for 
ours  only,  but  also  for  the  sins  of  the  world.'  Then 
came  the  thought,  *  If  the  whole  work  was  finished 
and  the  whole  debt  paid — what  is  there  left  for  me 
to  do?  *,  and  with  this  dawned  the  joyful  conviction, 
as  the  light  was  flashed  into  my  soul  by  the  Holy 
Spirit,  that  there  was  nothing  in  the  world  to  be 
done  but  to  fall  down  on  one's  knees,  and  accept  the 
Saviour  and  His  salvation,  to  praise  Him  forever- 


CHINA  AND  JAPAN  207 

more.  Thus  while  my  mother  was  praising  God  on 
her  knees  in  her  chamber,  I  was  praising  Him  in  the 
old  warehouse  to  which  I  had  gone  alone  to  read  this 
little  book  at  my  leisure."  (From  Story  of  China 
Inland  Mission,  pp.  53f.) 

From  his  entrance  into  the  kingdom  of  God  this 
great  missionary  leader  was  dominated  by  the 
simple  but  all  inspiring  doctrine  of  the  Cross.  His 
deep  and  abiding  convictions  about  the  death  of 
Christ  for  his  sins,  and  the  love  of  God  that  made 
possible  His  only  begotten  Son's  death  as  his  sub- 
stitute, prepared  him  to  believe  with  full  assurance 
in  the  care  of  God  for  those  who  do  His  will  fully, 
and  also  put  a  burning  desire  in  his  heart  to  give,  as 
a  token  of  gratitude,  all  his  talents  to  be  used  only 
for  the  Father's  glory  in  making  Christ  known  to 
the  perishing  millions  of  interior  China. 

In  writing  about  his  call  and  consecration  to 
God's  service  he  mentions  the  moving  factor  in  it 
all :  *'  Well  do  I  remember  the  occasion.  How  in 
the  gladness  of  my  heart,  I  poured  out  my  soul  be- 
fore God ;  and  again  and  again  confessing  my  grate- 
ful love  to  Him  who  had  done  everything  for  me — 
who  had  saved  me  after  I  had  given  up  hope  and 
desire  for  salvation.  I  besought  Him  to  give  me 
some  work  to  do  for  Him,  as  an  outlet  for  love 
and  gratitude;  some  self-denying  service,  no  matter 
what  it  might  be,  however  trying,  or  however  triv- 
ial; something  with  which  He  would  be  pleased,  and 
I  might  do  directly  for  Him  who  Jtad  done  so  much 


208     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

for  me.  Well  do  I  remember  as  in  unreserved  con- 
secration I  put  myself,  my  life,  my  friends,  my  all 
upon  the  altar,  the  deep  solemnity  that  came  over 
my  soul  with  the  assurance  my  offering  was  ac- 
cepted. The  presence  of  God  became  unutterably 
real  and  blessed."  (History  of  C.  I.  M.,  pp.  57f.) 
His  clear  insight  into  the  need,  the  love  that 
prompted,  and  the  results  of  the  atoning  death,  the 
gratitude  that  should  ever  move  the  hearts  of  all 
who  are  recipients  of  these  blessings,  and  the  com- 
plete consecration  that  should  always  follow — giv- 
ing all  to  His  service,  account  for  the  marvelous 
results  of  his  life  in  bringing  the  Chinese  to  God. 
The  Cross,  that  portrayed  more  fully  than  anything 
else  in  all  the  world  the  heart  of  God,  became  the 
cross  that  filled  his  heart  and  called  him  to  one  con- 
tinuous life  of  giving  back  to  the  Father  that  which 
was  his  solely  through  the  accomplishments  of  this 
sacrifice.  We  see  in  his  service  much  of  the  Master 
as  he  walked  among  men  and  gave  His  life  for  the 
world's  redemption.  He  entered  into  fellowship 
with  his  Master,  learned  of  His  plans,  found  his 
chief  joy  in  seeing  these  inaugurated,  so  lived  daily 
in  touch  with  heaven  as  to  enable  the  Father  to 
speak  through  him,  live  in  him,  and  manifest  the 
heavenly  life  in  his  touch  with  the  heathen.  Such 
a  life  in  any  country  among  any  class  must  yield 
abundant  fruit  and  shine  with  resplendent  glory  in 
earth's  darkest  places.  From  his  life  in  China  we 
can  quite  safely  conclude  that  a  missionary's  life  in 


CHINA  AND  JAPAN  209 

its  fruitfulness  in  the  things  of  the  kingdom  is 
determined  by  his  rightful  comprehension  of  the 
realities  of  the  Cross  and  his  willingness  to  live  daily 
among  the  heathen  in  a  way  to  manifest  the  spirit 
and  power  of  these  realities.  It  was  the  Cross  that 
led  him  into  the  work  and  gave  power  and  effective- 
ness to  his  message  and  life  on  the  foreign  field. 

JOSEPH    HARDY   NEESIMA 

I  have  chosen  this  native  Japanese  as  the  one 
whose  life  has  been  most  richly  blessed  of  God  in 
establishing  Christianity  in  Japan.  While  a  mere 
boy  with  an  ambition  to  do  the  most  possible  for  his 
nation,  he  worked  his  way  across  the  Pacific,  and 
educated  himself  in  the  United  States.  There  was 
a  pure  and  ever-living  fire  in  his  soul  to  enlighten 
and  redeem  his  own  people.  This  passion  grew 
more  intense  as  he  felt  the  hour  had  come  for  him 
to  return  and  be  spent  for  Christ  in  seeking  to  save 
his  kinsmen  according  to  the  flesh.  Just  before  his 
departure  for  Japan  to  commence  his  work  he  said : 
"  I  expect  to  meet  some  difficulties  and  trials,  yet 
I  shall  count  it  all  joy,  not  only  to  believe  in  Christ, 
but  to  suffer  for  His  name." 

Joseph  Hardy  Neesima  was  greatly  blessed  with 
all  wisdom  and  spiritual  understanding  in  opening 
the  work  with  his  own  people.  He  soon  realized 
if  Christianity  was  to  influence  the  leading  men  of 
his  country,  there  must  be  Christian  schools  where 
the  youth  of  Japan  could  be  grounded  in  the  doc- 


210      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

trines  and  could  stand  above  their  fellows  in  all 
things  that  make  for  the  good  of  the  new  national 
spirit;  hence  he  founded  Doshisha  College — now 
Doshisha  University — at  Kyoto,  the  greatest  temple 
city  in  Japan,  where  the  magnificent  University  now 
stands  in  honour  to  his  faithful  persistent  efforts  to 
plant  Christianity  in  the  Island  Kingdom  during 
the  most  trying  days  of  the  early  struggle. 
Doshisha  is  the  great  pioneer  in  Christian  education 
in  Japan,  and  has  been  the  most  powerful  institu- 
tion there  to  give  Christianity  a  firm  basis  and  ex- 
tensive recognition  among  all  classes.  This  school 
was  a  mighty  power  as  long  as  she  stood  for  the 
doctrines  promulgated  by  her  famous  founder. 

In  reading  the  life  of  Neesima,  as  he  poured  out 
his  heart  daily  on  the  altar  of  service  to  save  his 
people,  there  is  plainly  revealed  the  fact  that  he 
was  moved  in  every  action  by  the  love  of  God  for 
all  men  as  manifested  in  the  gift  of  His  only  be- 
gotten Son.  He  felt  keenly  that  so  great  a  gift, 
freely  given  to  redeem  us,  demanded  complete  abne- 
gation of  self  and  full  surrender  of  all  to  God's 
service.  Every  sense  of  gratitude  and  soldierly  loy- 
alty forced  him  to  follow  the  Captain  of  his  salva- 
tion and  always  seek  to  imitate  Him  as  the  perfect 
Model.  These  are  his  own  words  to  his  Captain: 
"  Here  I  am,  employ  me  in  Thy  vineyard  if  Thou 
findst  pleasure  in  Thy  humble  servant.  Whether  I 
live  or  die,  I  must  live  or  die  for  Christ."  It  was 
this  spirit  that  made  his  life  count  for  so  much  in 


CHINA  AND  JAPAN  211 

establishing  Christianity  in  Japan.  He  went  among 
his  fellowmen  as  a  man — one  of  them,  yet  in  whose 
every  act  could  be  seen  the  love  and  motive  of  serv- 
ice perfectly  manifested  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  His 
voice  was  heard  in  the  capital  of  his  nation,  his  pres- 
ence found  among  the  princes  as  one  whose  knowl- 
edge of  all  things,  that  make  for  the  betterment  of 
his  country,  was  more  helpful  than  others.  He  had 
in  him  in  his  relation  to  the  leaders  of  the  nation 
"  a  more  excellent  spirit  than  the  rest,"  hence  his 
life  spoke  more  effectively  of  the  life  of  Christ.  The 
sacrifice  of  the  Master  in  bearing  the  Cross  was  the 
force  that  moved  him  to  follow  always  his  Lord  in 
giving  his  all  to  make  Japan  free  indeed. 

The  great  problem,  which  is  now  facing  the 
forces  of  Christ  in  Japan  as  to  how  they  can  check 
the  materialistic  and  rationalistic  tendencies  of  the 
masses  and  turn  their  hearts  to  the  spiritual  again,  is 
indeed  a  most  difficult  one.  The  struggle  of  many 
of  the  churches  to  hold  their  own,  the  growing  aver- 
sion of  men,  once  favourable  to  Christianity,  to  give 
Christ  primacy  in  the  hearts  of  their  countrymen, 
must  be  looked  upon  with  much  alarm.  How  can 
these  forces  be  either  overcome  or  directed  into 
channels  that  will  turn  all  powers  to  Him  who  justly 
demands  that  He  be  given  first  place  in  all  hearts? 
How  can  the  Japanese  be  made  to  see  that  the  best 
for  the  nation,  as  well  as  the  individual,  comes  only 
in  giving  Christ  first  place?  These  questions  cannot 
be  answered  hastily  by  any  one,  much  less  by  those 


212     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

of  us  who  are  not  giving  ourselves  to  the  problem; 
however,  we  believe  that  a  return  to  the  Cross  of 
Christ  with  life  and  teaching  adjusted  to  emphasize 
adequately  the  same,  like  Joseph  Hardy  Neesima 
did  and  won  so  many  glorious  victories,  will  cer- 
tainly do  much  to  meet  the  present  situation,  and 
bring  back  the  lost  opportunities  when  Japan  was 
the  most  hopeful  of  all  the  non-Christian  lands.  In 
the  Cross  may  yet  be  found  the  power  to  make  real 
the  former  desire  and  hope  to  win  Japan  to  "  His 
obedience,"  and  then  she  will  have  a  large  part  in 
leading  the  Orient  to  Christ. 


XVIII 

OTHER  PROMINENT  MISSIONARY 
MOVEMENTS 

A  STUDY  of  the  basic  principle  in  all  advanc- 
ing movements  of  Christianity  in  the  home 
and  foreign  lands  would  be  most  profitable 
to  us  for  our  present  needs,  but  this  is  quite  im- 
possible. All  we  can  do  is  to  examine  the  founda- 
tion doctrine  in  the  most  prominent  world-wide 
movements.  This  I  have  sought  to  do ;  however,  in 
addition  to  those  noticed,  there  are  a  few  more  that 
need  to  be  included  before  we  close  the  investigation 
from  the  verification  of  history. 

DAVID  BRAINERD's  LIFE  AND  WORK  AMONG  THE 
AMERICAN    INDIANS 

No  man's  life  has  been  used  of  God  more  than 
David  Brainerd's  to  help  the  cause  of  world-wide 
missions.  It  was  not  his  actual  work  among  the 
Indians  that  has  been  blessed  so  greatly,  but  it  is  his 
consecration  and  insight  into  the  Lord's  plans  for 
the  world's  redemption  and  entire  devotion  of  his 
life  to  these  plans — in  this  his  labours  have  counted 
above  all  others.  His  example  of  giving  himself 
unreservedly  to  God  to  be  consumed  on  His  altar  for 

213 


214      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

the  redemption  of  the  Redman  of  the  American 
forests  has  been  used  by  the  Holy  Spirit  in  a  mar- 
vellous way  to  kindle  zeal  and  passion  for  the  neg- 
lected of  all  lands.  The  greatest  appeal  to  God*s 
people  for  the  untouched  millions  in  heathen  lands 
is  not  these  heathen,  as  pitiable  and  hopeless  as 
they  are  apart  from  the  Gospel ;  but  the  appeal  that 
counts  for  the  most  is  the  one  that  leads  God's  chil- 
dren fully  to  surrender  to  the  Father's  will  and  to 
consecrate  all  they  have  to  the  ushering  in  of  His 
kingdom  among  men.  David  Brainerd  did  this  so 
fully  himself  that  his  life  and  work  has  been  a 
mighty  power  for  the  advancement  of  the  heavenly 
kingdom  in  the  lands  far  away.  He  only  thought 
of  doing  God's  will  in  all  things,  which  to  him  was 
preaching  the  Gospel  to  Indians  of  New  England; 
yet  his  "  broken  body  "  has  sent  its  healing  fra- 
grance to  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth.  It  was 
blessed  when  first  so  richly  given,  and  has  been  a 
blessing  all  the  years  since  in  moving  men  to  go  to 
the  regions  beyond,  and  live  and  tell  of  the  world's 
Redeemer. 

His  work  for  the  neglected  Indians  was  done 
some  fifty  years  before  William  Carey  reached 
India.  He  spent  only  a  few  years  in  service.  His 
earthly  life  was  given  up  for  the  heavenly  at  the 
early  age  of  twenty-nine;  but  in  the  few  years  of 
his  intense  living  he  did  more  to  influence  others  to 
give  up  everything  for  the  Lord's  work  than  any 
other  man  in  the  history  of  modern  missions.     He 


OTHER  MISSIONARY  MOVEMENTS      215 

so  perfectly  set  forth  the  crucified  Hfe  of  Jesus  that 
his  labours  among  the  American  Indians  was  won- 
derfully blessed  in  his  day.  The  work  he  com- 
menced lived  on  after  him  as  others  were  inspired 
to  continue  that  which  he  began  with  such  zeal  and 
hope. 

It  was  his  life  that  led  Jonathan  Edwards  to 
leave  the  comforts  of  a  highly  developed  pastorate 
and  continue  the  work  with  the  Indians.  William 
Carey  traced  his  desire  to  go  to  the  foreign  field — 
partly  at  least  if  not  altogether — to  the  life  and 
teaching  of  Brainerd.  Henry  Martin,  who  reminds 
us  so  forcibly  of  this  hero  of  New  England,  tells 
us  that  it  was  the  reading  of  the  life  of  his  full 
surrender  and  consecration  kindled  in  his  own  heart 
a  desire  to  be  spent  for  God  in  heathen  lands.  "  His 
life  also  influenced  directly  Samuel  Marsden  and 
Thomas  Chalmers,  and  through  them  directly  count- 
less millions."     (From  His  Biography.) 

Why  did  this  short  life  lead  so  many  to  give 
themselves  to  God's  service?  His  literary  attain- 
ments were  not  equal  to  many  of  his  day;  but  his 
influence  far  excelled  any  one  of  his  fellows.  In 
the  wisdom  and  graces  of  the  Spirit  he  stood  head 
and  shoulders  above  all  the  rest.  He  had  that 
Divine  life  that  made  the  one  aim  of  his  existence  to 
save  others  for  the  Father's  glory.  His  ceaseless 
aim  and  joy  was  to  do  the  Father's  biddings.  If 
such  a  life  were  to  become  common  to  all,  "  who 
name  the  name  of  Christ,"  the  rivers  of  power  and 


216     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

influence  would  soon  spread  over  all  the  earth  with 
their  streams  of  blessings  for  all  men. 

David  Brainerd  believed  with  all  his  heart  and 
lived  accordingly  that  as  the  Father  sent  the  Son  so 
are  we  sent.  He  felt  that  the  chief  aim  of  every  fol- 
lower of  Jesus  and  the  paramount  need  of  His  king- 
dom is  to  set  forth  Christ  crucified  among  men. 
Cold,  sceptical  human  nature  cannot  be  warmed  and 
given  power  to  live  again — lived  anew — by  our 
deadening  theories  about  the  Christ-life — we  must 
live  Him  if  our  words  are  to  be  effective  and  un- 
belief is  overcome  by  faith.  The  "  interesting " 
dogmas  of  the  faith  that  engaged  the  minds  of  the 
Christian  thinkers  of  his  day  permitted  these  men 
to  enjoy  the  over-comforting  churches  of  New  Eng- 
land and  sit  amidst  the  blessings  of  their  cultured 
cities  and  refined  neighbourhoods,  perfectly  con- 
tented while  ''  the  poor  Indian "  groped  in  igno- 
rance of  the  world's  Saviour.  From  these  churches 
and  neighbourhoods  could  be  seen  the  tops  of  the 
trees  that  gave  shelter  on  the  distant  mountain  sides 
for  the  wigwams  of  their  heathen  neighbours;  but 
these  self-satisfied  Christians  were  not  moved  by 
any  sense  of  neglect  to  those  who  lived  so  near 
them  without  any  knowledge  of  Him  who  died  for 
the  sins  of  the  world.  Brainerd  knew  full  well  that 
this  condition  did  not  reveal-  the  will  of  the  Master 
for  His  children.  He  came  with  such  a  spirit  of  zeal 
and  sacrifice  for  the  Gospel's  sake  that  these  very 
things  isolated  him  from  the  religious  leaders  of  his 


OTHER  MISSIONARY  MOVEMENTS      217 

day  and  made  him  a  stranger  among  men  like  his 
Master  was.  However,  his  Hfe  was  afterwards  so 
used  of  God  as  to  influence  New  England  and  the 
entire  Christian  world  to  see  the  life  that  reaches 
farthest  away  is  the  one  lived  most  intensely  for 
God.  We  can  see  from  his  own  words  what  was  the 
moving  force  in  his  life  and  gave  him  his  holy 
ambition. 

He  wanted  the  will  of  the  Father  to  be  all  and  all 
in  his  life  which  would  enable  him  to  reproduce  the 
Master's  life.  "  Here  am  I,  Lord,  send  me  to  the 
ends  of  the  earth,  send  me  to  the  savage,  rough 
pagans  of  the  wilderness,  send  me  even  to  death 
itself  if  it  be  but  in  Thy  service  and  for  the  pro- 
motion of  Thy  kingdom."  While  he  neared  the 
eternal  bliss  of  the  Father's  presence,  he  spoke  these 
words :  "  My  heaven  is  to  please  God  and  glorify 
Him,  and  give  all  to  Him,  and  be  wholly  devoted  to 
His  Glory.  If  I  had  a  thousand  souls  and  they  were 
worth  anything,  I  would  give  them  all  to  God." 
"  All  I  want  is  to  be  more  holy,  more  like  my  dear 
Lord."  The  last  words  in  his  diary  read :  "  O 
that  His  kingdom  might  come  in  the  world;  that 
they  might  all  love  and  glorify  Him,  for  what  He  is 
in  Himself;  and  that  the  blessed  Redeemer  might 
see  of  the  travail  of  His  soul,  and  be  satisfied.  Oh 
come  Lord  Jesus !  come  quickly !    Amen." 

These  brief  sentences  from  David  Brainerd's 
Diary  show  how  he  gave  his  life  back  to  God  com- 
pletely, no  reservation,  no  counting  the  cost,   no 


218     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

taking  the  world  or  the  flesh  into  consideration,  but 
yielding  his  will  entirely  to  God  and  living  always 
under  all  conditions  by  the  faith  of  the  Son  of  God 
who  loved  him  and  gave  His  life  for  him.  Such 
a  life  will  always  be  honoured  of  God  and  used  to 
bless  many.  A  life  thus  lived  may  be  counted  wasted 
by  a  commercial  age,  but  it  is  reckoned  as  life  more 
abundant  by  Him  who  called  us  to  give  all  things 
for  His  sake  that  we  may  magnify  the  higher  and 
better  life.  He  lived  a  life  richly  blessed  among  the 
wild  tribes  of  the  forests,  and  continues  to  increase 
in  power  and  usefulness  even  unto  this  day.  Why  so 
richly  blessed  ?  No  other  answer  is  possible  except 
he  entered  into  the  sacrificial  Hfe  of  his  Master. 
The  Cross  of  Christ  ever  had  first  place  in  his  heart. 
Jonathan  Edwards  says  that  he  manifested  the 
Master's  life  in  every  word  he  uttered,  and  this  was 
evident  to  all  who  had  the  great  pleasure  of  coming 
into  direct  touch  with  him.  Even  the  brief  prayers, 
asking  the  Father's  blessings  on  the  daily  meals  re- 
vealed the  love  and  passion  of  the  Lbrd.  He  was 
a  vessel  ready  to  be  used  for  any  purpose  that 
pleased  his  Master.  He  put  himself  in  the  Divine 
hands  to  be  used  as  it  pleased  Him,  to  be  offered 
up  to  carry  out  the  will  infinitely  higher  and  better 
than  his  own.  Thus  we  see  why  his  life  was  so 
abundantly  blessed,  and  is  a  worthy  example  for 
others  who  would  permit  our  Lord  to  use  them  to 
bring  the  greatest  good  to  our  age  and  those  who 
will  come  after  us. 


OTHER  MISSIONARY  MOVEMENTS      219 

THE    WORK    OF    JOHN    G.    PATON    AMONG   THE    NEW 
HEBRIDES  ISLANDS 

His  work  among  the  cannibals  of  these  islands  has 
been  wonderfully  used  in  turning  these  people  from 
wild  savagery  to  love  and  serve  the  only  true  God. 
He  undertook  a  hopeless  task,  as  far  as  man  could 
see ;  yet  he  went  not  in  his  own  strength  and  wisdom, 
but  in  that  of  His  Master,  trusting  Him  alone  for 
results.  The  plans  and  life  of  the  crucified  were 
his,  and  he  lived  to  see  them  realized.  The  results 
of  his  long  and  faithful  and  surpassingly  fruitful 
life  show  us  that  his  course  was  not  in  vain. 

Soon  after  he  decided  that  the  Saviour's  will  for 
his  life  was  for  him  to  go  as  a  missionary  to  the 
cannibals,  a  dear  old  Christian  friend  tried  to 
frighten  him  so  he  would  not  go.  **  You  are  going 
to  labour  among  the  cannibals?  The  cannibals! 
You  will  be  eaten  by  cannibals."  His  reply  was 
characteristic  of  his  life:  "Mr.  Dickson,  you  are 
advanced  in  years  now,  and  your  own  prospect  is 
soon  to  be  laid  in  the  grave,  there  to  be  eaten  by 
worms;  and  I  confess  to  you,  if  I  can  but  live  and 
die  serving  and  honouring  the  Lord  Jesus,  it  will 
make  no  difference  to  me  whether  I  am  eaten  by 
cannibals  or  worms ;  and  in  the  Great  Day  my  resur- 
rection body  will  arise  as  fair  as  yours  in  the  like- 
ness of  the  Redeemer." 

He  says  in  his  work  among  the  natives  the  doc- 
trines which  he  had  to  weave  into  their  seared  con- 


220     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

sciences  by  oft  repetition  were  the  following :  *'  The 
idea  that  God  so  loved  the  world  that  He  sent  His 
only  begotten  Son  to  seek  and  save  them, — the  idea 
that  this  Jesus  so  lived  and  died  and  rose  from  the 
dead  as  to  take  away  man's  sins  and  make  it  pos- 
sible for  man  to  return  to  God  and  made  unto  the 
very  likeness  of  His  Son  Jesus."  Surely  this  was 
a  great  undertaking  among  the  degraded  tribes  of 
long  practised  cannibalism.  Most  hearts  would  have 
shrunk  from  the  task,  but  he  gladly  commenced  his 
work  with  a  "  quenchless  hope." 

In  describing  the  actual  work  of  preaching  to  the 
cannibals  he  says :  "  His  Cross  must  yet  be  lifted 
up  where  the  blood  of  the  saints  has  been  poured 
out  in  His  name."  ''  Ere  long  we  were  able  to  speak 
to  them  about  sin  and  salvation  through  Jesus 
Christ."  And  again,  "  Thus  the  waves  of  hope  and 
fear  swept  alternately  across  our  lives;  but  we  em- 
braced every  possible  opportunity  of  telling  them 
the  story  of  the  life  and  death  of  Jesus,  with  the 
strong  hope  that  God  would  spare  us  yet  to  bring 
the  benighted  heathen  to  the  knowledge  of  the  true 
salvation,  and  to  love  and  serve  the  only  Saviour." 
In  the  many  dangers  he  encountered  in  his  efforts 
to  reach  the  cannibals,  and  his  implicit  trust  in  Him 
who  sent  him  forth,  and  his  determination  to  give 
the  Cross  of  Christ  due  emphasis,  we  see  the  glorious 
results  that  always  follow  those  who  do  the  Lord's 
work  in  the  Lord's  way. 

We  learn  about  the  doctrines,   which  John  G. 


OTHER  MISSIONARY  MOVEMENTS      221 

Paton  gave  a  large  place  in  his  ministry,  by  the 
words  of  one  of  his  first  converts.  This  convert 
prayed  when  they  were  in  the  most  trying  position 
(it  looked  like  they  would  be  eaten  by  cannibals) : 
"O  God  protect  us;  or,  if  they  are  permitted  to 
kill  us,  do  not  Thou  leave  us,  but  wash  us  in  the 
blood  of  Thy  dear  Son  who  came  down  to  earth  and 
shed  His  blood  for  sinners."  It  was  this  great  truth 
— which  is  so  prominent  in  the  New  Testament 
teaching  of  the  Cross — that  so  changed  a  cannibal 
in  a  few  years  that  he  could  enter  into  fellowship 
with  John  G.  Paton  and  His  Master  and  seek  to  win 
others  rather  than  destroy.  He  wanted  to  labour  to 
help  others  to  know  the  light  that  can  illuminate  the 
worst  hearts  and  speedily  transform  the  vilest  lives 
like  unto  that  of  their  Master's. 

John  G.  Paton  felt  like  the  Apostle  Paul,  that  he 
bore  in  his  body  the  marks  of  the  Lord  Jesus.  He 
sacrificed  joyfully  that  the  heathen  might  know  God. 
He  counted  the  privilege  one  that  angels  would  ac- 
cept gladly,  and  nothing  on  earth  could  compare  with 
the  greatness  of  the  trust  committed  to  his  hands. 
He  felt  also  somewhat  as  Paul  did  about  the  heathen 
seeking  to  know  God.  "  The  heathen  has  been  all 
his  days  groping  after  peace  of  soul  in  dark  super- 
stition and  degrading  rites.  You  pour  into  his  soul 
the  light  of  redemption.  He  learns  that  God  is  love, 
that  God  sent  His  own  Son  to  die  for  him,  and 
that  he  is  the  heir  of  life  eternal  in  and  through 
Jesus.    By  the  blessed  enlightenment  of  the  Spirit  of 


222     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

God  he  believes  all  this,  and  becomes  a  messenger 
(of  the  truth  that  has  made  him  free),  and  gladly 
bears  the  tidings  of  redemption  to  those  who  know 
it  not,  and  willing  to  sacrifice  his  life,  if  need  be, 
for  his  countrymen." 

Nothing  could  thus  change  so  quickly  and 
thoroughly  the  life  and  motives  of  the  cannibals 
except  the  Cross  in  its  purity  and  fulness.  The 
central  power  of  every  missionary  movement  was 
duly  wrought  out  in  the  life  and  work  of  this  great 
missionary.  He  was  true  to  this  doctrine,  and  his 
work  was  greatly  blessed  in  changing  the  lives  of 
the  heathen,  who  formerly  devoured  their  own  people 
as  an  occasion  of  great  hilariousness  and  feasting, 
to  giving  their  own  lives  to  preach  the  message  of 
salvation.  Those  who  years  before  were  quite  will- 
ing to  eat  their  enemies,  now  were  willing  to  be 
eaten,  if  need  be,  for  the  redemption  of  their  peo- 
ple. John  G.  Paton  lived  to  see  island  after  island 
changed  from  the  crudest  forms  of  superstition  and 
ignorance  to  Christian  civilization,  enlightenment, 
and  sacrificial  service. 

Just  before  he  passed  from  his  glorious  earthly 
labours  to  labours  still  more  abundant  in  the  heav- 
enly realms,  he  said  this  about  his  life:  "If  God 
gave  me  back  my  life  to  live  over  again,  I  would 
without  one  quiver  of  hesitation  lay  it  on  the  altar  to 
Christ  that  He  might  use  it  as  before  in  similar  min- 
istries of  love,  especially  among  those  who  have 
never  heard  the  name  of  Jesus.    God  gave  His  best, 


OTHER  MISSIONARY  MOVEMENTS      223 

His  Son  to  me;  I  give  back  my  best,  my  all  to  Him." 
The  great  love,  which  God  so  richly  bestowed  upon 
us  in  giving  His  only  Son  for  our  redemption,  was 
the  one  thing  that  prompted  his  action  in  giving 
back  his  life  to  God  for  the  work  among  the  can- 
nibals, and  which  always  sought  to  make  prominent 
this  love  that  passeth  knowledge.  He  believed,  he 
lived,  and  reckoned  on  the  realities  of  the  Atone- 
ment, hence  there  went  with  him  in  his  message  to 
the  heathen  the  power,  the  inspiration,  and  the 
Divine  transforming  glory  that  made  his  work 
Christ-like  and  full  of  gracious  results  to  those  with 
whom  he  laboured. 

THE  RESCUE  WORK 

Rescue  work  in  the  larger  cities  illustrates  most 
forcibly  the  spirit  that  sends  the  missionary  far 
away.  Many  of  those  who  are  sought  by  the  rescue 
workers  have  been  abandoned  by  all  the  churches. 
They  are  totally  separated,  as  a  rule,  from  the  love 
and  benign  influences  of  God's  children  whose  en- 
vironment and  opportunities  have  been  better  than 
theirs.  They  are  given  over  to  sin  and  the  cruel 
customs  of  our  society,  without  hope  as  the  forces 
of  evil  atrophy  every  desire  of  their  better  selves. 

What  is  the  motive  that  prompts  the  angelic  forms 
to  move  gently  among  the  white-light  districts  where 
these  sadly  neglected  people  are  found  ?  What  doc- 
trine or  principle  is  moving  the  consecrated  women 
to    leave    the    comforts    and    refinements    of    the 


224     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

Christian  home  to  seek  and  to  save  their  wayward 
sisters?  The  young  woman,  who  leaves  her  home, 
puts  on  the  red  cap  with  the  white  cross  and  gives 
herself  entirely  to  rescuing  these  pitiable  slaves  of 
sin,  is  prompted  by  what  spirit?  What  leads  her 
to  make  this  sacrifice  for  others,  without  hope  and 
without  confidence  in  those  claiming  to  be  followers 
of  Him  who  loved  the  fallen  and  sought  the  out- 
casts? What  motive  is  it  forces  the  cultured  men 
and  women  of  this  and  other  lands  to  forsake  all, 
that  is  regarded  by  the  many  as  worth  while,  to  give 
the  down-and-out  classes  of  society  an  opportunity 
to  hear  the  songs  of  the  redeemed  and  see  their 
faces  shining  with  the  glory  of  the  better  land? 
What  power  is  driving  some  of  our  women  "  to  don 
the  poke  bonnet "  and  go  to  the  outcasts  of  our 
cities  and  call  the  church  forsaken  to  a  life  of  purity 
and  service  in  Christ  Jesus?  On  what  do  such 
labourers  base  their  offer  of  immediate,  full  and  free 
salvation  from  past  and  present  sins  and  adequate 
strength  for  all  future  needs  in  the  moral  conflict? 
It  is  the  one  great  fact  in  history, — that  Jesus  gave 
Himself  on  the  Cross  for  the  sins  of  the  whole  world 
and  offers  through  His  finished  work  full  and  free 
salvation  to  all  classes  of  men  and  women  in  every 
land — the  Cross  makes  all  this  work  possible.  The 
message  that  rings  clear  and  bright  in  every  meeting 
held  by  these  rescue  workers  is  the  Cross  around 
which  everything  centres,  and  by  reason  of  which 
they  have  infinite  hope  for  the  worst  and  offer  to 


OTHER  MISSIONARY  MOVEMENTS      225 

these  endless  possibilities  of  restoration  and  service. 

Just  as  this  reality  of  the  Cross  sends  the  home 
missionary  to  the  lowest  stratum  of  society,  seeks 
out  the  neglected  sections  of  our  country,  meets  the 
foreigner  as  he  steps  upon  our  shores  with  love  and 
sympathy  to  help  him  meet  the  problems  of  his  new 
life,  the  same  working  force  seeks  in  tender  love 
and  care  to  win  the  Indians  of  America  to  the 
Saviour.  Many  of  these  are  still  unacquainted  with 
the  white  man's  Saviour.  It  is  the  Cross  of  Christ 
that  is  moving  the  hearts  of  God's  children  to  reach 
these  Indians  as  we  are  seeking  to  reach  all  who 
know  him  not  in  the  neglected  fields  of  the  earth. 
The  life  of  Christ,  manifested  in  deeds  of  love  and 
kindness  as  our  Master  did,  in  our  touch  with  these 
people  will  turn  their  needy  hearts  to  the  Master. 

Whether  in  the  so-called  Christian  lands  in  the 
work  of  extending  the  kingdom  of  God  in  the  neg- 
lected fields  or  in  the  great  mission  fields  of  all  the 
earth,  we  see  that  every  advancing  movement  in  the 
Father's  work  to  meet  the  world's  needs,  had  its 
beginning  and  received  its  carrying  and  conquering 
force  in  the  Cross  of  Christ  rightly  related  to  life. 
In  the  present  work  of  reconstruction  in  Europe  and 
America,  as  well  as  in  the  non-Christian  lands,  we 
shall  make  permanent  and  effective  the  Lord's  plan 
of  reconstruction  and  conquest  by  giving  heed  to  the 
Cross  life  and  teaching.  The  voice  of  history  has 
confirmed  revelation  and  needs  to  be  wisely  heeded 
as  we  seek  to  bring  to  the  blasted  fields,  strewn  with 


226      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

the  shattered  hopes  of  Western  civilization,  the 
glories  of  heaven's  richest  gift  to  the  children  of 
men — the  Cross  of  our  Saviour,  the  world's  only 
hope  whether  in  the  Western  lands  or  in  the  be- 
nighted fields  of  the  earth. 


XIX 

THE  CROSS  AND  THE  PRESENT  WORLD 
SITUATION 

THE  world  needs  reconstruction  no  one  will 
question.  Europe  is  torn  to  pieces  by  wars, 
the  Orient  is  fast  losing  its  moorings,  and 
the  Western  hemisphere  is  full  of  turmoil  in  the 
fields  of  industry  and  business.  Everywhere  there 
is  rapid  transition  from  the  old  to  something  differ- 
ent if  not  new.  The  great  need  is  to  bring  order, 
peace,  and  good-will  where  righteousness  and  justice 
will  prevail  in  all  relationships.  When  this  is  true, 
purity  and  holiness  and  stalwart  manhood  will  be 
found  solving  the  world's  problems. 

How  are  the  new  problems  in  the  new  age  and  the 
old  problems  from  the  old  age  to  be  solved  ?  Many 
theories  are  advanced.  The  labouring  man,  the  mer- 
chant, the  capitalist,  the  scholar,  and  the  theologian 
all  are  advancing  theories.  Many  of  these  theories 
are  drastic,  saying  that  old  methods  and  old  truths 
are  not  suited  to  the  new  age.  Some  go  as  far  as 
to  say  that  even  Christianity,  too,  must  give  place 
to  the  changing  order — we  must  have  a  new  church 
and  a  new  Christ.  Yes,  there  is  a  demand  for  a  new 
Christianity  when  we  compare  the  Christianity  that 


228      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

existed  in  the  so-called  highly  civilized  world  before 
the  war.  The  failures  of  the  past  years  in  the  cul- 
tural, scientific  age,  claiming  to  be  advanced  Chris- 
tianity, have  turned  serious  hearts  the  world  over 
to  considering  what  is  the  eternal  truth  from  which 
we  can  hope  to  spring  the  healing  balm  that  will 
meet  the  world's  suffering  needs  ?  We  need  to  con- 
sider this  question  in  view  of  the  new  day  now  ap- 
proaching. From  the  recent  years  of  suffering  and 
sacrifice  we  can  see  emerging  hopeful  signs.  Much 
preparation  has  been  made.  It  is  well  to  note  some 
of  the  work  of  preparation  that  gives  great  hope  of 
a  better  day.  I  mention  a  few  of  the  most  im- 
portant : 

The  sacrifice  of  many  of  our  strongest  young  men 
and  women.  They  gladly  gave  their  lives  for  the 
world's  hope.  Geo.  W.  Truett  writes  as  follows 
about  the  heroic  sacrifice  our  men  made  in  France : 
"  There  were  two  brothers  over  there  from  North 
Carolina.  Their  colonel  told  me  as  they  went  into 
battle,  they  shook  hands  and  covenanted  together 
that  they  would  play  the  man.  One  of  them  fell 
with  a  deadly  wound.  The  other  stooped  and  bent 
over  him,  but  the  dying  man  said :  '  Kiss  me, 
brother,  and  go  on,  keep  going.  Do  your  whole 
duty,  tell  mother  that  I  died  doing  mine.'  One  of 
our  own  American  party  went  into  a  French  hospital 
where  there  were  men  who  had  no  eyes,  no  legs. 
He  saw  a  French  soldier  with  legs  gone  and  ex- 
pressed pity  for  him.    '  Oh  no,  sir '  said  the  French 


PRESENT  WORLD  SITUATION        229 

soldier,  '  Do  not  pity  me;  I  offered  France  my  life, 
and  she  took  only  my  legs.  Who  am  I  to 
complain  ? '  " 

This  sacrifice  of  the  world's  noblest  manhood 
must  not  be  in  vain.  We,  who  follow  the  Captain 
of  our  salvation,  who,  too,  was  made  perfect  by 
suffering,  should  gladly  give  our  all  for  the  battle 
of  all  battles,  which  must  be  fought,  to  subjugate  the 
world  to  our  Lord.  The  spirit  of  sacrifice  in  the 
battlefields  of  Europe  we  commend  and  say  our 
boys  were  noble  heroes;  but  in  the  battle,  where 
men  must  never  retreat  until  the  kingdoms  of  this 
world  are  won  for  the  kingdom  of  our  Christ,  we 
need  to  be  even  more  willing  to  sacrifice  and  spend 
all  gladly  that  men  may  be  freed  from  the  thraldom 
of  sin. 

We  are  but  beginning  to  understand  real  sacrifice 
like  our  Master  made  and  how  imperative  it  is  for 
all  who  enter  into  fellowship  with  Him  to  be  par- 
takers of  His  spirit  if  they  are  to  reign  with  Him  in 
the  conquering  life.  The  all  important  need  of 
Christianity  in  the  present  crisis  is  to  return  to  the 
spirit  of  sacrifice  and  devotion  to  the  Father's  will 
which  our  Lord  ever  made  His  chief  aim  in  coming 
to  this  earth.  Never  can  Christianity  conquer  in 
the  great  heathen  lands  nor  the  strongholds  she  must 
battle  against  in  the  home  lands  until  His  children 
find  their  chief  delight  in  following  fully  the  Saviour 
in  his  Cross  life.  It  is  not  a  new  Christianity  we 
need,  but  rather  a  clearer  insight  into  the  verities 


230     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

of  the  eternal  truths  of  the  Cross  as  revealed  to  us 
by  the  life  and  teachings  of  the  Master.  We  do 
not  need  a  new  sun,  new  stars,  new  atmosphere,  but 
the  clearing  away  the  obstructions  made  by  man 
so  that  these  can  show  forth  in  their  original 
splendour.  Then  they  can  perform  their  functions 
radiating  light  and  power  that  purifies  and  re- 
vivifies all  the  disturbed  elements.  Just  so  with 
Christianity,  its  central  and  all  comprehensive  truth, 
must  be  cleared  of  the  barriers  and  obstructions 
forced  on  it  by  past  ages,  and  given  free  control 
to  rule  supremely  in  human  hearts  and  in  all  human 
relationships,  and  then — and  not  till  then — will 
Christianity  meet  all  human  needs. 

A  closely  related  truth  to  the  above  is  that  of 
obedience.  Good  soldiers  obey  their  captain.  They 
are  not  to  fear  and  falter,  but  obey  and  march  over 
the  top  and  conquer.  Obedience  may  mean  death — 
it  often  does  and  always  puts  the  soldier^s  life  in 
jeopardy — but  what  is  a  soldier  worth  who  will  not 
go  forth  in  spite  of  this?  His  life  is  on  the 
country^s  altar  to  be  consumed  as  seems  best  for  his 
nation's  weal.  In  the  kingdom  of  God  is  not  this 
even  more  true?  As  we  look  at  the  life  of  so  many 
Christians,  we  see  how  shallow  has  been  the  spirit 
of  sacrifice  and  obedience  manifested  in  much  of 
prevailing  Christianity.  The  Master's  orders  to 
conquer  the  world — make  disciples,  or  disciple  the 
nations — were  given  nearly  nineteen  hundred  years 
ago,  yet  the  great  mass  of  His  followers  are  not  con^ 


PRESENT  WORLD  SITUATION       231 

cerned  about  the  millions  without  any  knowledge 
of  the  Gospel.  "  It  is  estimated  that  there  are  more 
people  now  living  in  the  world,  who  never  heard  the 
Gospel,  than  were  on  this  earth  when  Jesus  gave  the 
command  to  go  forth  and  make  disciples  of  all  the 
nations."  Men  of  God  rest  easy  and  in  comfort 
while  these  millions  are  still  without  the  saving 
knowledge  of  Christ's  redemptive  work  for  their 
salvation.  Is  not  this  the  most  pathetic  thing  in  the 
history  of  Christianity,  and  our  shame  and  disgrace? 
Jesus  Christ  made  the  sacrifice  for  the  sins  of  the 
whole  world.  It  was  His  obedience  to  the  Father's 
will,  which  He,  of  His  own  choice  did  gladly,  that 
was  well  pleasing  to  the  Father.  Can  any  child  of 
God  be  well  pleasing  to  the  Father  who  will  not 
gladly  obey  the  command  to  disciple  the  nations? 
Can  we  call  Him  Lord  and  not  do  the  things  which 
He  commands  ?  Obedience  ever  remains  better  than 
sacrifice  and  to  hearken  to  the  command  (the  voice) 
of  the  Lord  than  any  forms  of  service.  Nothing 
can  satisfy  the  demands  of  the  Cross  life  in  Christ 
except  complete  surrender  of  life  and  all  we  have 
for  Him  to  use  as  He  desires  to  win  men  to  the 
Father.  It  is  not  only  in  forms  and  mere  gifts  our 
Lord's  demands  are  meet  in  the  Cross.  We  must 
follow  Him — "  renounce  self  " — that  we  may  be 
used  of  Him  to  speak  effectively  His  message  to 
needy  souls.  Pity  and  shame  ever  be  upon  any 
people  who  will  seek  to  attenuate  the  demands  of  the 
Cross  life  by  considering  lightly  its  requirements. 


232     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

The  time  will  come — may  it  hasten — when  every 
man,  who  refuses  or  fails  to  follow  the  Lord  in  win- 
ning this  world  to  the  Father,  will  be  called  a  slacker 
in  the  kingdom  of  God.  To  fail  to  come  to  the 
Lord's  help  in  reaching  out  to  the  centres  of  sin  and 
the  benighted  nations,  we  are  sinning  against  all  that 
is  holy  in  the  Father's  nature  which  longs  that  all 
men  would  come  into  the  knowledge  of  the  truth. 
To  call  such  men  Christians  will  be  a  misnomer  in 
the  kingdom  of  God  where  discipleship  is  deter- 
mined by  obedience  (Matt.  16.24). 

The  Emphasis  upon  the  Lordship  of  Christ  is 
another  hopeful  sign  in  the  approaching  age.  Paul 
writes  in  Rom.  14.9:  "For  to  this  end  Christ 
both  died,  and  rose,  and  revived  that  He  might  be 
Lord  both  of  the  dead  and  living."  The  lordship  of 
Jesus  Christ  should  ever  be  our  watchword  in  our 
efforts  to  reconstruct  the  chaotic  world.  He  alone 
can  do  the  work  of  reconstruction,  but  He  must  have 
willing  hearts  to  co-operate  with  Him.  Those  who 
do  must  to  reconstruct  the  world  on  abiding  prin- 
ciples will  give  the  lordship  of  the  risen  conquering 
Christ  the  first  place  in  all  things. 

The  larger  place  given  to  justice  and  righteous- 
ness means  much  for  the  coming  of  the  better  day. 
This  is  as  the  Master  meant  and  means  much  for 
His  kingdom.  "  Behold  thy  king  cometh  to  thee ; 
He  is  just  and  having  salvation;  lowly  and  riding 
upon  an  ass,  and  upon  a  colt  the  foal  of  an  ass  " 
(Zech.    9.9).     The    lowliness    and   justice   of    the 


PRESENT  WORLD  SITUATION        233 

Master  are  the  elements  which  will  save  the  world 
in  the  age  where  true  service  and  helpfulness 
bring  hope  to  torn  hearts — torn  by  selfishness  and 
strife.  Jesus  came  to  give  His  life  to  this  holy  pur- 
pose. The  justice  of  the  Lord  as  revealed  in  His 
suffering  righteousness  alone  can  bring  order  and 
peace  in  the  restless  nations.  There  are  many  every- 
where in  the  Christian  countries  and  some  in  the 
non-Christian  lands  who  are  longing  for  the  justice 
of  the  lowly  Servant.  In  a  recent  tour  of  China 
and  Japan,  I  found  men  in  the  highest  position  in 
governmental  service  giving  due  emphasis  to  this 
blessed  element  in  the  Master's  Cross  life.  I  will 
give  two  examples  which  are  typical  of  many.  Hon. 
Thomas  Sammons,  Consul-General  of  the  United 
States,  located  for  a  number  of  years  at  Shanghai 
writes :  "  I  am  not  unmindful  of  the  industrial  and 
commercial  development  in  harmony  with  the  policy 
of  righteousness  and  fair  dealing.  To  illustrate,  I 
have  persistently  urged  my  son,  Mr,  Wheeler 
Sammons,  to  weave  into  the  poHcy  of  some  of  the 
publications  with  which  he  is  connected  (including 
System,  a  magazine  of  business),  the  controlling 
and  fundamental  policy  of  righteousness.  This  I 
have  termed  *  Industrial  Righteousness.' 

"  There  is  great  opportunity  for  the  development 
of  industrial  righteousness  in  China." 

Hon.  G.  S.  Moss,  H.  B.  M.  Consular  Service, 
Shantung  Province,  China,  writes :  "  Personal 
honesty  and  independent  moral  stamina  is  w^hat  is 


234      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

chiefly  needed  in  China.  The  great  problem  in 
China  is  to  maintain  the  coherency  of  the  family, 
and  at  the  same  time  develop  personal  honesty  and 
independence  of  character.  Is  this  task  too  much 
for  Christianity  ?  The  system  which  solves  this  will 
capture  the  imagination  of  young  China  and  its 
suffrage.  The  tendency  (in  China)  is  to  seek  sal- 
vation by  short  cuts,  Western  education,  militarism, 
political  reform,  materialism  in  all  its  shapes, 
especially  as  interpreted  by  Japan.  The  trouble, 
however,  is  deep-rooted  and  can  be  dealt  with  by 
nothing  less  than  moral  regeneration.  The  only 
solution  I  see  is  wisely  applied  Christian  principle, 
but  there  must  be  no  cant/' 

The  Hon.  Cheng,  Secretary  of  Foreign  Affairs 
in  Central  China,  told  me  that  China  would  do 
anything  the  United  States  advised  in  the  reconstruc- 
tion of  their  nation.  China  is  expecting  Christian 
righteousness  and  fair  play  from  the  hands  of  the 
United  States  and  this  is  why  we  are  the  favoured 
nation  with  the  Oriental.  The  peoples  of  the  Orient 
will  be  impressed  with  the  suffering  righteousness 
and  unselfish  service,  which  Christ  manifested  in  all 
its  beauty  and  simplicity  in  His  own  life,  and  would 
have  His  followers  to  do  as  we  walk  in  His  steps  in 
turning  the  weary  nations  to  the  source  of  all  their 
needed  blessings.  If  these  throngs  of  restless  masses 
are  to  be  won  to  His  obedience,  we,  His  followers, 
must  illustrate  by  concrete  acts  the  righteousness  of 
our  Lord  and  Master. 


PRESENT  WORLD  SITUATION        235 

Still  another  hopeful  sign  and  needed  preparation 
is  the  larger  spirit  of  co-operation — unity  of  purpose 
— in  the  marching  army  of  the  Lord's  host.  In  the 
work  of  reconstruction  every  child  of  the  King 
should  work  for  the  common  goal  of  bringing  the 
peoples  of  all  the  eath  into  subjection  to  the  Father's 
will.  The  strength  of  the  whole  army  should  be 
spent  for  the  constructive  work  of  the  conquering 
host.  Jesus  in  His  farewell  prayer  with  His  dis- 
ciples gave  first  consideration  to  this  very  important 
truth — "  that  they  may  be  one,  as  we  are  " ;  **  that 
they  all  may  be  one,  as  thou,  Father,  art  in  me,  and 
I  in  thee,  that  they  also,  may  be  one  in  us :  that  the 
world  may  believe  that  thou  has  sent  me."  Even 
the  glory  which  the  Father  gave  the  Son  was  re- 
vealed to  His  disciples  that  they  might  be  one  "  even 
as  we  are  one." 

The  oneness  of  God's  people  for  which  Christ 
prayed  and  many  are  joining  Him  in  this  prayer 
that  it  may  be  fulfilled  means  much  for  the  solution 
of  the  world's  problems.  We  do  not  mean  man 
made  unity  or  uniformity — the  world  has  had  too 
much  of  this — for  such  false  forms  have  done 
nothing  but  harm  to  true  Christian  unity.  However, 
false  forms  and  failures  in  the  past  should  not  keep 
us  from  desiring  the  true  and  labouring  to  bring 
it  about. 

The  basis  of  this  oneness  is  found  in  the  Cross  of 
Christ.  Here  alone  can  we  hope  to  have  the  unity 
which  Christianity  needs  in  its  conquering  tread. 


236      THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

In  Col,  1. 20  we  note,  "And,  having  made  peace 
through  the  blood  of  the  Cross,  by  him  to  reconcile 
all  things  unto  himself;  by  him,  I  say  whether  they 
be  things  on  earth,  or  things  in  heaven."  These 
are  all  reconciled  by  the  Cross.  If  all  things  in 
heaven  and  on  earth  are  reconciled  by  the  Cross — 
"  the  blood  of  the  Cross  " — surely  God's  people  can 
be  made  one  by  this  Cross.  We  are  one  in  Him. 
Jesus  says  in  Jno.  17.26 — His  final  word  in  this 
prayer  of  farewell — "  And  I  have  declared  unto 
them  thy  name  and  will  declare  it,  that  the  love 
wherewith  thou  hast  loved  me  may  be  in  them,  and 
I  in  them."  This  is  the  foundation  and  only  hope 
that  his  prayer  may  be  fulfilled.  When  the  Father's 
love  wherewith  He  loved  the  Son,  and  Christ  Jesus 
dwell  in  the  heart  of  the  believers,  then  they  will  be 
one  as  Jesus  prayed.  The  Cross  of  Christ  in  the 
sublime  surrender  of  self — will  to  do  the  Father's 
will — "  I  came  to  do  thy  will  O  God  " — is  the  one 
foundation  of  the  union  of  God's  people.  When  all 
wills  are  one  with  His  perfectly  as  in  the  Cross  life, 
it  will  be  inevitable  that  they  will  be  one,  and  the 
Lord's  prayer  will  be  realized  in  the  kingdom  of 
God. 

The  unity  of  the  human  race  and  the  common 
social  problems  that  effect  all  men  find  their  hope 
of  solution  in  the  unity  for  which  Christ  prayed. 
Jesus  saw  His  truths  reaching  every  heart  throb, 
every  suffering  needy  one  the  world  over.  No  man 
can  live  unto  himself,  the  human  family  must  rise 


PRESENT  WORLD  SITUATION        237 

or  fall  together  in  the  last  analysis.  We  look  with 
pity  and  regrets  that  any  group  of  believers  must 
be  provincial,  would  be  satisfied  with  meeting  the 
needs  only  of  their  own  people,  and  not  feel  the 
longing  cries  for  help  that  come  from  all  who  find 
not  rest  in  the  Saviour.  All  needs  can  be  rightly 
met  and  happily  solved  by  giving  Christianity's  one 
foundation  supreme  sway  in  the  hearts  of  God's 
children — giving  the  Cross  complete  rule  in  the 
hearts  of  men.  Then  all  will  understand  his 
brother's  needs  and  Christ-like  will  spend  and  be 
spent  for  the  welfare  of  the  sin-enslaved  the  world 
over. 

Vice-president  Marshall  of  the  United  States  said 
in  a  recent  message  to  his  fellow  Christians,  "  Some 
day  the  church  must  be  the  vital  source  of  the  solu- 
tion of  the  world's  problems.  .  .  .  If  I  were  called 
upon  to  give  any  message  to  my  church;  it  would 
be  to  express  the  belief  that,  though  men  may  be 
tired  of  church  forms  and  ceremonies,  they  are  not 
tired  of  the  principles  of  the  Nazarene,  and  the  best 
way  for  the  church  to  meet  labour  problems  and 
social  crises  is  to  begin  to  square  itself  with  its 
doctrines.  This  squaring  can  be  done  only  by  each 
member  squaring  himself."  The  atoning  love  and 
righteousness  in  the  Cross  of  Christ  is  the  one  doc- 
trine that  gives  vital  force  to  all  Christian  principle 
so  that  all  human  needs  can  be  solved  in  the  service 
which  reaches  all  in  every  condition.  In  saying  this 
we  must  remember  that  the  basis  of  all  true  and 


238     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

noble  service  in  God's  kingdom  that  will  really  meet 
man's  needs  must  be  founded  on  the  holy  righteous- 
ness as  seen  in  the  Cross  of  Christ.  No  softening 
of  this  great  reality  will  make  the  service  of  Christ 
truly  meet  man's  needs.  Any  attenuating  the  verities 
of  the  Cross  Life  here  would  be  fatal.  We  will 
never  win  by  compromise  at  this  or  any  other  point 
in  the  Cross's  demands — such  would  be  suicidal; 
but  we  can  win  in  all  the  earth  in  meeting  all  needs 
by  being  true  to  Christianity's  one  foundation  of 
world  conquest.  It  is  the  lifting  up  of  the  Lamb 
that  was  slain  in  all  His  awful  grandeur  of  His  sac- 
rificial life  in  His  eternal  relation  to  the  Father's 
glory  and  man's  infinite  needs  that  will  draw  all 
men  unto  Him. 

Dr.  Eliot  of  Harvard  some  years  ago  made  a  trip 
to  the  Orient,  giving  special  study  of  Christianity's 
work  of  world  conquest.  He  returned  to  Boston 
and  made  a  report  of  his  trip  to  the  ministers  of 
that  city.  He  said  the  following,  "  The  orthodox 
churches  are  handicapped  in  the  foreign  fields  with 
an  unpreachable  faith,  and  yet  with  generous  gifts 
of  money  and  splendid  enterprise  and  devoted  sac- 
rifice, they  are  working  in  foreign  lands  and  doing 
the  very  things  needed  to  be  done  even  while  they 
contradict  the  very  elements  of  their  faith.  On  the 
other  hand  the  Liberals  (his  people  and  others  in 
many  of  the  churches)  with  magnificent  ideals,  with 
glorious  concepts,  with  the  truth  of  Christ  in  all  its 
purity  and  simplicity  sit  in  snug  content  offering  the 


PRESENT  WORLD  SITUATION        239 

world  of  missions  in  the  hour  of  hunger  only  dry 
bones  of  criticism  of  those  who  already  serve."  Dr. 
Eliot's  statement  of  what  the  people  are  doing  is 
quite  correct,  but  his  reasons  are  not  well  founded. 
The  so-called  Liberals,  as  he  mentions  them,  have 
failed  to  give  the  Cross  its  right  place  in  their  pro- 
gram of  service.  Nothing  in  the  way  of  intellectual 
or  material  equipment  can  make  up  for  this  sad 
fact  of  those  who  would  win  the  world  to  the  Father 
by  other  methods  than  the  Cross  rightly  related  to 
the  Father's  demands  and  human  needs. 

In  looking  over  the  world  in  its  present  conditions 
and  longings,  we  can  see  that  the  above  tendencies 
and  onward  workings  of  the  kingdom  of  God  in  its 
plans  of  world  conquest,  much  is  being  done  that 
give  us  real  hope.  Nevertheless  we  would  not 
minimize  the  things  that  retard  and  the  clouds  that 
rise  up  in  many  lowering  forms  everywhere  that 
give  no  signs  of  an  early  dissipation.  Even  these 
may  mean  a  rapid  change  of  the  order  and  the  Lord's 
method  of  conquest.  We  know  all  peoples  are  ready 
as  never  before  for  the  Gospel's  peace  and  truth. 
All  the  nations  are  waiting  consciously  or  uncon- 
sciously for  the  power  of  the  Cross  to  come  and  solve 
their  needs  and  bring  all  their  hopes  and  powers  unto 
His  obedience.  Every  phase  of  the  Cross  which 
we  see  emphasized  in  this  changing  order  makes 
ready  the  fullest  conquest  of  the  Gospel's  message  as 
shown  in  the  Cross.  Here  alone  is  the  consummation 
of  all  aspiration  that  springs  from  every  human 


240     THE  VERIFICATION  OF  HISTORY 

heart  in  the  families  of  the  earth,  the  one  basis  of 
bringing  all  rule  and  authority  and  all  power  subject 
to  the  Father's  will  throughout  the  whole  earth  that 
He  may  be  all  and  in  all.  Then  this  prodigal  earth 
will  realize  tts  glorious  goal,  and  we  will  be  able  to 
join  in  happy  hearts  with  Dr.  Reginald  I.  Howe  in 
singing  the  world  missionary  hymn: 

"  What  these  sounds  from  every  qfiarter, 
Gathering  strength  as  on  they  roll 
'Tis  the  tread  of  many  nations 
Hastening  to  a  common  goal. 
What  the  power  that  stirs  them  onward 
As  resistless  as  the  sea? 
His  who  said  'If  I  be  lifted, 
I  will  draw  all  men  to  Me/ 

"  Now  at  last  the  Saviour  seeth 
Of  the  travail  of  His  soul 
And  the  Cross  its  might  extendeth 
East  to  West,  from  pole  to  pole. 
Afric  first  to  hear  the  message. 
Turns  from  darkness  to  the  light. 
Fetish  fear  and  spirit  worship 
Flee  like  spectres  of  the  night. 

"  India,  the  land  of  the  spirit. 
Mystic  seeker  after  the  truth 
Heareth  now  a  voice  proclaiming 
I  am  Way  and  Life,  The  Truth. 


PRESENT  WORLD  SITUATION        241 

Lute  the  ancient  Mongol  Empires 
And  the  islands  of  the  sea. 
Futile  self -endeavour  leaving. 
Learn  to  lean,  O  Christ,  on  Thee. 

"  Let  the  mighty  host  go  onward, 
Over  plain  and  desert  sand. 
Till  they  reach  the  land,  The  Holy, 
Like  the  magi,  gifts  in  hand, 
Till  they  come  to  David's  city, 
To  the  feet  of  Calvary, 
Then  all  kneeling,  all  adore  Him, 
Jesus  reigning  from  the  tree." 


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